23 International Federations and one of the five groups that make up the world of sport came together in a joint meeting in Bangkok, hosted by IFMA the world governing body of Muaythai. IFMA General Secretary and President of AIMS Stephan Fox , welcomed all the members of the Olympic family, from the IOC, IWGA, FISU, TAFISA and many others for a day of important presentations.

Christian Wassmer Head of Recognised Stakeholder Relations, IOC, kick off the day with an important presentation on the IOC Agenda 2020, the Olympic Channel and the future of AIMS within the IOC Movement. He also presented detailed information on the IOC recognition process. AIMS President Stephan Fox, thanked Mr Wassmer for his presentation and the support of IOC towards the AIMS family.

The CEO of the International World Games Association Mr Joachim Gossow was the second speaker. The World Games are an important part of the Olympic movement as many sports in the Olympics come via the World Games and many AIMS members are already member of the IWGA and or included in the World Games. Mr Gossow presented the IWGA structure and a detailed presentation on the 2017 World Games in Wroclaw, Poland and ensured the close cooperation between IWGA and AIMS.

Mr Paulo Ferreira, FISU WUC Director, presented on behalf of FISU on the importance of education and sport, the Universiade program, the World Championship program and the first step towards FISU patronage for sports not recognised by FISU.

Dato Sarjit Singh Sekhon, the representative of TAFISA Sport for all, showed his surprise to see so many sports and Olympic stakeholders coming together for the meeting in Bangkok, and also on the cooperation between IOC, TAFISA and AIMS in continuing to use sports on all levels and the exchange of sport and culture.

Many other presenters were present such as Anna-Karin Jatfors the Regional Program Manager for UNiTE  to End Violence Against Women and the role of sports and sporting heroes in the Campaign, Guy Horne for IEC in Sports an important platform for all federations, Hagen Bossdorf on the the World Games Channel, and Mr Igor Lanzoni presented on behalf of the Pierre de Coubertin foundation.

The meeting can only be hailed a huge success, with federations leaving enlightened on the vital steps towards highest recognition and for a much closer cooperation between the stakeholders in the world of sport. Everyone is looking forward to the next meeting in Lausanne in November and AIMS would like to thank all the participants, Thailand hopes you have enjoyed your time in the beautiful Kingdom.