The International Horse Sports Confederation (IHSC) held its General Assembly on December 7, 2019 at the Hong Kong Jockey Club where the group elected a new President and received a number of important updates on its strategic projects, including the ongoing development of a new vaccine for African Horse Sickness (AHS).
Ingmar De Vos, President of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) was unanimously elected President of the IHSC for a two-year term. He had previously served as the IHSC’s Vice-President. Louis Romanet, past President of IHSC and Chairman of IFHA, was also elected as Vice-President of IHSC for a two-year term.
A Belgian native, De Vos has served as President of the FEI since 2014 after previously serving as the International Federation’s Secretary General. He has been a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) since September 2017, where he is currently member of two Commissions, the Legal Affairs Commission and the Los Angeles 2028 Coordination Commission, while he has also served in the past as a member of the Digital and Technology Commission. He is a member of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) governance taskforce and since April 2019 he is also an ASOIF Council Member.
In early November 2018 he was appointed to the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) Council and as the GAISF representative on the 12-member World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Executive Committee. As of January 1, 2020, he will be the ASOIF representative on the WADA Executive Committee and Foundation Board. He is also on the board of the Belgian National Olympic Committee.
Following his election as IHSC President, Ingmar de Vos said:
“I’m extremely honored to be elected President of the IHSC and I would also like to thank our past President Louis Romanet for his dedication to the successful cooperation and information exchange between horse racing and equestrian sport through the IHSC. Under his leadership, the IHSC has continued the relationship with the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the further development of the OIE Terrestrial Animal Health Code and concepts that will facilitate horse movements such as the HHP Framework with the HHP Handbook and IHSC-OIE Regional Workshops for Temporary International Movement of Competition Horses. Besides this, further scientific research was done in the field of vaccines for AHS, Equine Influenza and Glanders, the adoption of revised international standards on equine diseases and other standards relevant to international movement of horses.
He continued:
“Our Confederation represents the peak bodies of our respective sports and I look forward to furthering the collective interests of our Federations in the areas of equine welfare, the international movement of horses, and collaboration with the OIE.”
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