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IF Seminars

As a complimentary service to International Federations, The Olympic Capital organises a series of eight seminars directed at the different departments/activities within an International Federation.

These seminars are open exclusively to staff from International Federations based in the Canton de Vaud. Typically, they take place at the MSI from 9-12 and are followed by a light lunch.

The dates for the 2019 IF Seminars are as follows:

  • March 26: Communications & Marketing
  • April 30: Development
  • May 21: Technologies & Innovation
  • July 2: Health
  • September 10: Legal
  • October 8: Events
  • November 12: Clean Sport
  • December 3: Member Services


    • The description of the Seminars will be provided below in due course.

    • Communications/Marketing

      Brand-building in IFs – Why? What? And How?

      Building the brand of an organisation and its product is often cited as a crucial element to success. This includes the world of sports, where advocates of brand-building allude to how it can help establish a clearly-defined position in the market, which can help the Federation and the sport to develop successfully.

      But without a universal definition of what a brand is, developing it is not always an easy process. This is especially the case for International Federations, who often have somewhat limited resources, and are extremely busy in the day-to-day operations of developing the sport.

      So what exactly is a brand and why should IFs focus on building it? What are the aspects IFs should consider and steps they should take when reshaping their brand? And how best can they measure the impact of such potential changes?

      This Seminar will take a look at how best IFs can reflect on and build their brands, hearing from branding experts and a number of case studies from IFs themselves.

      Speakers at this Seminar:

      • Frank Persyn, Team Persyn Sports Consulting

      • Anna Sarafianou, FIVB

      • Chris Wells, World Archery

    • Development

      How best can IFs distribute and monitor development resources to their members?

      International Federations are responsible for supporting the development of their National Federations in several ways, including the provision of funding and a range of other important engagement programmes and services.

      But with such development initiatives naturally costing resources, IFs must ensure that their distribution is carefully thought-through. If they are not delivered in an efficient and effective manner, the National Federation – and thus the sport – cannot truly develop.

      So how best can IFs ensure the distribution of their development resources is well-grounded? What are types of support that IFs should be offering? How can IFs create an effective formula to dictate the level of support different members should get? And how can IFs ensure that such funding and services are being used appropriately?

      This Seminar will look at some of the approaches IFs should consider when distributing and monitoring support to their members, hearing from speakers with different experiences of working alongside a group of members.

      Speakers at this Seminar:

      • Yassine Yousfi, Olympic Solidarity

      • Pere Miro, FINA

      • Mike Joyce, Andre Oliveira & Yoshiro Hirawawa, FIH

    • Technolgies & Innovation

      The Esports Phenomenon: What’s in it for IFs?

      The growth of the esports industry to date has been remarkable, with recent estimates now valuing the industry at more than $1 billion, with more than 450 million viewers worldwide. Moreover, the rapid growth is showing no signs of slowing down. Esports, it appears, are here to stay.

      With such incredible growth, especially among young people, it can be a natural concern for more traditional sports that focus and attention could be driven away from them – both in terms of participation and audience.

      So how should IFs approach the esports phenomenon? Should it be treated as a threat, or should IFs look for new ways to incorporate esports in their provision of services? And, crucially, how can they look to do this?

      This Seminar will look at the growth of the esports industry and the approaches IFs should consider in response to it, hearing from a variety of speakers with experience of working both in esports and the more traditional sports arena.

      Speakers at this Seminar will include:

      • Ronnie Hanson, Burson Cohn & Wolfe

      • Susanne Schodel, FAI

    • Finance & Administration

    • Legal

    • Events

    • Clean Sport

    • Member Services