Currently, Latvian Rowing Federation President Gunta Vlasenko, Latvian Volleyball Federation President Jānis Buks and Latvian Modern Pentathlon Honorary President Andris Feldmanis are running for the post of LOK President. The Sportacentrs.com portal, in the introduction of this week, surveyed a significant part of the representatives of the federations with voting rights in order to find out what their choice will be in the upcoming vote for the chair of the LOK president.
Less than a week before the session of the General Assembly, only the representatives of nine federations were ready to give a clear and public answer in favor of one, the other or the third candidate. The others excused themselves with the desire to listen to what the candidates offered, as well as with the fact that there is still time for outstanding laws – this issue should be discussed in the boards of the federations. This seems a little strange… if a week is such a long period of time to decide an important issue, then maybe we don’t live so badly after all? Also, most of the federation bosses did not want to be allowed to quietly look at their cards – to express anonymously which way they are leaning – which does not rule out the possibility that there is more than one game going on at the moment.
Almost all the respondents (including those who have already made their choice) said that in this vote they will have to choose the good of the lesser of the evils, because there is no ideal candidate among the existing ones. In the sports community, there is a rather vivid opinion that the president elected now will be a short-term solution, but in the near future (until the elections next year) we will have to look for another, stronger one.
It is worth mentioning that among the heads of the federations, who did not hide their cards, the most open “for” vote was for Jānis Bukas, who, compared to his fiercest competitor Andri Feldmani, wants to make bigger changes in the sports industry. The previous experience of similar votes shows that such publicly expressed support does not really guarantee anything. The real result will be visible on July 11, when – willy-nilly – everyone will have to put their cards on the table.
“The Latvian sports community is intimidated and very afraid, so people are not ready to speak a clear language. The activist group that I represent has grown significantly since its beginnings. Currently, we have a total of 18 federations that are actively discussing and talking about things. I am aware that there are also representatives of the federations who simply want to be informed about what is happening. About timidity – when we started our work, Kārlis Lejnieks asked me if I was aware of what would happen if we didn’t get along? He said that Georges Tikmers would take revenge on me,” said Jānis Buks, who has previously expressed that he will be ready to lead the LOK until next summer, when the elections for a new president are scheduled.
Asked if he can do the necessary things that he is currently coming to the sports community with in the course of a year, promoting his candidacy for the position of LOK president, Buk answers confidently, pointing out only a few obvious things that need to be sorted out. “A lot can be done during the year. My wish is to establish a couple of basic principles. Members must be talked to, processes must be transparent, decisions must be explained. One should not live apart from the sports community, the athlete should be in the foreground, not the administration and officials. These are relatively simple things that can be done in a year. The principle of four eyes must be established. We must definitely increase the role of the executive committee, it is not normal as it is now when the executive committee gets together and has a nice talk. It is also necessary to try to increase the LOK budget. The management of the LOK must treat all members and sports equally, there must be no discrimination,” Buk lists the list of tasks to be completed.
High-achieving sports or a healthy Latvian society? This issue has recently become very relevant. “In my opinion, a healthy nation should be promoted as a priority. If the Latvians are healthy, the sports infrastructure will be developed in parallel, and high-achieving sports will not disappear anywhere,” said one of the candidates for the post of LOK president.
Buks has already clearly defined that one strong sports organization should be established in Latvia, not as it is now, when several state funds are shared. “By combining these organizations, we can save around 300 thousand euros on administrative costs alone. We do not need to ask for this money from the state, but find it ourselves. It’s not a lot, but it’s a significant amount. Today I met with biathletes who need 60 thousand for new, nature-friendly lubricants. The Federation doesn’t have that kind of money, but we can maintain a large administrative apparatus… It won’t solve all problems, but we can definitely find the funds there. There are positions where money can be saved within the Olympic centers, including councils. Within the existing budget, we can get funds for sports and athletes. Meanwhile, Feldmanis walks around and scares everyone that nothing good will come from such a merger. I believe that it can’t be worse than it is now,” Buk is direct.
The agenda of the extraordinary General Assembly session includes the following issues:
1) LOK presidential elections;
2) Election of missing LOK Executive Committee (EC) members from among LOK members – presidents of Olympic sports federations or heads of executive institutions (note – newly elected LOK IK members must be ready to apply for the status of public official);
3) Election of three vice-presidents of the LOK from among the members of the IK of the LOK according to the proposal of the president of the LOK;
4) Debates.
It has already been reported that five Olympic federations nominated Jānis Buka to the post of LOK president – the Latvian Basketball Association, the Latvian Swimming Federation, the Latvian Cycling Federation, the Latvian Surfing and SUP Federation and the Latvian Volleyball Federation. On the other hand, Gunta Vlasenko has been nominated by the Latvian Rowing Federation as a candidate for the LOK president, while Andri Feldmanis is nominated for this position by the Latvian Modern Pentathlon Federation.
The total number of mandates that can be issued at the LOK congress will be 112 (80 for federations + 32 individual members).
LOK members will also have to elect the 13 missing members of the LOK Executive Committee in the new week. At the beginning of the LOK scandal, after which the previous president of the organization, Georges Tikmers, resigned, the Ministry of Education and Science urged the members of the executive committee to determine the status of a public official. Currently, only nine of the 22 members of the Executive Committee continue their work.
It has already been announced that in the middle of May, the current president of the LOK, Georges Tikmers, who came to the attention of the mass media in connection with a possible conflict of interest, decided to leave his post.
