The 95th General Assembly of the UIM, chaired by President Dr Raffaele Chiulli and Secretary General Thomas Kurth, brought together the world of powerboating for a week of meetings, policy making and elections in the UAE Emirate of Fujairah. Hosted by the Fujairah International Marine Sports Club, the UIM – which this year is celebrating its 100th anniversary – assembled the UIM Council, the Executive Committee and its International Commissions, Committees and Working Groups as well as delegates from around the world for a review of its racing activities and future direction. The UIM Council also ratified the Union’s new Environmental Policy as delegates were finally reunited for the first physical General Assembly since Qingdao in 2019.

“As a Federation, we should be proud of where we are and how far we have come since the UIM was originally established in 1922,” said President Chiulli. “We are now a global sporting federation and proud to be recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). “But while we can be rightly satisfied with our journey, we must never become complacent. It is imperative that we always strive to improve what we have to offer and never take for granted the hard work and diligence of those who came before us. “That is why we remain focused on our objectives – namely, develop the opportunities for youth and the disadvantaged, underline our commitment to inclusivity, and focus on training, education and, of course, the environment and sustainability.” PRESS RELEASE About the Union Internationale Motonautique. The UIM is the world governing body for all Powerboating activities. It is fully recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), is a member of the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) and of the Association of the IOC Recognized International Sports Federations (ARISF), for which UIM President, Dr. Raffaele Chiulli also serves as President (ARISF).

The UIM has 64 affiliated National Federations. Circuit, Offshore, Pleasure Navigation, Aquabike and MotoSurf are the main disciplines. The UIM has signed a Cooperation Agreement with the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) to further its range of environmental initiatives, share expertise and work together for “greening” the Sport. One of the key aspects of the General Assembly was the election to determine the structure of the Commissions that deal with the safety and technical aspects of the sport, as well as the Commissions handling offshore, pleasure navigation and sport. Once voting was complete, it was confirmed that the USA’s Fred Hauenstein and Bob Wartinger were re-elected as the Presidents of COMINSPORT and COMINSAFE respectively, while Belgium’s Jean-Marie Van Lancker (COMINOFF), Denis Dillon of Ireland (International Pleasure Navigation) and Swede Mikael Lundblad (COMINTECH) were also all re-elected to their posts as Commission Presidents. In addition, Fred Hauenstein was re-elected as an Administrator and Member of the UIM Council, with Carla Chaghoury (Lebanon), Sami Abu Shaikha (Qatar), Paulo Ferreira (Portugal) and Christopher Loney (Great Britain) also elected as new Administrators and Members of the UIM Council. In addition, below the list of the persons appointed to chair the UIM Committees over the next 4 years.

Estelle PORET (FRA) UIM Athletes Committee Carla CHAGHOURY (LEB) UIM Equality Committee Christopher LONEY (GB) UIM Formulae Committee Tom STANLEY (CAN) UIM Safety Cockpit Committee Petr PYLAEV (RUS) UIM Formula Future Committee Karel KRAMER (CZR) UIM MotoSurf Committee Ahmed ALBLOOSHI (UAE) UIM Youth Development Committee Luca FILIBERTI (ITA) UIM Aquabike Committee Luis RIBEIRO (POR) UIM F1 Committee