World Rowing stands out amongst peer International Federations in latest ASOIF Governance Review

World Rowing has earned a leading position amongst peer International Sports Federations in the fifth review of International Federation Governance conducted by the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF).

 In the 2023-24 assessment, World Rowing becomes the highest-scoring International Federation amongst peer organisations of a comparable size and annual revenue. World Rowing’s results on certain critical indicators also exceed the scores of much larger organisations, reflecting on a deeply rooted culture of good governance and the continuous efforts made the governing body in recent years.

The ASOIF evaluation took the form of a self-assessment questionnaire independently moderation by the I Trust Sport organisation. The questionnaire consisted of 60 indicators covering Transparency, Integrity, Democracy, Development, and Control Mechanisms. Some 32 International Federations took part in the review.

Some of the notable findings were as follows:

• World Rowing was generally very strong in some of the most scrutinised areas, such as transparency of decision-making, gender equality, safeguarding, and environmental sustainability.
• World Rowing provides active support to its member federations on multiple areas, ranging from the overall development of the sport to coach education to implementation of human rights principles. This, across all continents and the three disciplines of Classic, Coastal and Indoor Rowing.
• All critical anti-doping functions are outsourced to an independent third-party, the International Testing Agency.
• Important work since the previous review has included the introduction of the chair of the Athletes’ Commission onto the Executive Committee, and further development of the World Rowing Education Academy platform.

World Rowing President, Jean-Christophe Rolland, said: “World Rowing has a long history of leadership in the world of integrity and governance. Working with a small team and with limited resources, we have had to be very targeted in our actions; ensuring that what we do has impact. The ASOIF governance review is a useful tool to keep that focus, question what could still be improved, and reflect on how to achieve our goals.  As an International Federation, we recognise the need to work with our Member Federations, using our collective expertise and the power of partnerships to grow our sport around the world in a manner that is sustainable and responsible.”

Read the full report of self-assessed and moderated scores for World Rowing here.

Read the full report from ASOIF here.