Candidates announced for 2022 Athletes' Commission elections

World Athletics has received 12 nominations for the six available seats on the World Athletics Athletes’ Commission.

All athletes accredited for the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 will have the right to vote in the elections, which will take place during the championships between 15-20 July in official team venues.

To be eligible for nomination, athletes must have participated in at least one of the past two editions of the World Athletics Championships, or in the most recent Olympic Games, or be a competitor at this year’s World Athletics Championships.

The 12 nominees, in alphabetical order, are:

Andrea Paola Bonilla 🇪🇨
Nominating member federation: ECU
Candidate info form

 

Lisanne de Witte 🇳🇱
Nominating member federation: NED
Candidate info form

 

Lauma Griva 🇱🇻
Nominating member federation: LAT
Candidate info form

 

Ramil Guliyev 🇹🇷
Nominating member federation: TUR
Candidate info form

 

Matthew Hughes 🇨🇦
Nominating member federation: CAN
Candidate info form

 

Ivet Lalova-Collio 🇧🇬
Nominating member federation: BUL
Candidate info form

 

Halimah Nakaayi 🇺🇬
Nominating member federation: UGA
Candidate info form

 

Airine Palsyte 🇱🇹
Nominating member federation: LTU
Candidate info form

 

Anna Ryzhykova 🇺🇦
Nominating member federation: UKR
Candidate info form

 

Lea Sprunger 🇨🇭
Nominating member federation: SUI
Candidate info form

 

Alessia Trost 🇮🇹
Nominating member federation: ITA
Candidate info form

 

Toshikazu Yamanishi 🇯🇵
Nominating member federation: JPN
Candidate info form

 

Six athletes will be elected in Oregon to fill the spots of the following outgoing Athletes' Commission members:

Inaki Gomez (CAN)
Kim Collins (SKN)
Adam Kszczot (POL)
Thomas Rohler (GER)
Ivana Vuleta (nee Spanovic) (SRB)
Benita Willis (AUS)

The official campaign period will start on 1 July, allowing candidates to promote their own campaigns. More information about the campaign period and election process are set out in the Athletes' Commission 2022 Elections Candidate Pack.

The importance of athletes to decision-making within World Athletics was recognised and embedded into the World Athletics structures with the governance and integrity reforms approved in December 2016.

Since 2019, the Chairperson and one other member of the Athletes’ Commission – one man and one woman – have been full voting members of the World Athletics Council. The Athletes currently holding these positions on the Council are Renaud Lavillenie (FRA, as Chair) and Dame Valerie Adams (NZL, as Deputy Chair).

“It has been an exciting, but also a challenging few years since our last Athletes’ Commission elections in Doha in 2019. For the first time in history, two Athletes’ Commission members have held voting seats on the World Athletics Council, giving more weight to the athlete’s voice at the leadership level of our sport,” says World Athletics Athletes’ Commission chair Renaud Lavillenie.

“The six athletes to be elected from this exciting group of 12 candidates will join a strong and experienced group of Commission members, and I am sure will pay a great contribution to the future of athletics, always with the athlete community’s best interests at heart. 

“I wish all the candidates good luck and would like to encourage all athletes competing at the World Athletics Championships next month to use their voice and vote for those who they think will best represent them on the Athletes’ Commission.”

World Athletics