ISSF to launch new junior cup championship in 2014
Munich, 19/12/2013 - The ISSF Executive Committee approved the establishment of a new ISSF Junior Cup Championship series. The official announcement of the new series and the selection of the first ISSF national federation to host a Junior Cup came today from ISSF President Olegario Vázquez Raña and Secretary General Franz Schreiber.
“ISSF Junior Cups are a vital part of a major new ISSF initiative to more actively promote junior shooting on a worldwide basis,” President Vázquez Raña said. “Encouraging more youth in more countries to participate in our sport by giving them more opportunities to compete in high standard international competitions is a key to our future.”
Secretary General Schreiber reported, “the ISSF ultimately expects to sanction and supervise Junior Cups on each continent every year. Junior Cup programs will include the 15 Olympic events plus the Youth Olympic Games Mixed Team events. Programs may also include team events, other ISSF-recognized events or ISSF-recognized Sport for All events such as Target Sprint or Five-Shot Air Pistol. Junior Cup competitions will be MQS competitions if conducted in the qualification timeline of the Youth Olympic Games or Olympic Games. They are open to all junior competitors who are age 20 or younger during the competition year.”
“We are pleased to announce that the first ISSF Junior Cup will be organized in Suhl, Germany on 26 May to 1 June 2014,” the Secretary General continued. “Suhl’s annual Junior International Shooting Competition (IWK) is already a well-established junior competition that has been held for many years; in 2013 this competition hosted 550 junior athletes from 40 nations. The Suhl Shooting Center is a great venue with many spectators and media support and it will be newly equipped with electronic targets in 2014. The ISSF looks forward to cooperating with the German Shooting Federation to launch the new ISSF Junior Cup series there.”
The ISSF plans to expand the Junior Cup series by selecting additional organizers for 2015. “The ISSF wants Junior Cups to fulfill standards similar to those established for World Cups to guarantee the best possible competitions for junior athletes,” President Vazquez added.
The ISSF will appoint a Technical Delegate for each Junior Cup. Vice President Gary Anderson will be the Technical Delegate for first Junior Cup in Suhl. He commented, “Junior Cups are indeed very important for the future of our sport. These additional international junior competition opportunities will inspire even more youths to become active in shooting.”
Other ISSF Junior development initiatives, in addition to Junior Cups and full ISSF support for the Youth Olympic Games, include adding Finals for 2014 World Championship junior events and encouraging ISSF National Federations to enter juniors in their two out-of-competition entry places in 2014 World Cups. For the first time since junior events were added to the ISSF World Championship program in 1994, junior events in the Olympic disciplines at the 2014 ISSF World Championship in Granada will include Finals.
“We are confident that a stronger ISSF junior program will bring all of us a stronger ISSF,” ISSF President Vázquez Raña concluded.
More info at http://www.issf-sports.org/news.ashx?newsid=1986
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Media contact:
Marco DALLA DEA
ISSF Communication Manager
marco@issf-sports.org