91st UIM GENERAL ASSEMBLY, BEIRUT - LEBANON    Beirut, 21st October 2018.   The 91st UIM General Assembly chaired by President Dr. Raffaele Chiulli and Secretary General Thomas Kurth assembled close to 100 National Federation delegates who had travelled from around the world to the Lebanese capital. Over seven days the members of the UIM Council, the Executive Committee and the International Commissions, Committees and Working Groups reviewed the 2018 season's international racing activities, elaborated the changes to be implemented in view of the new season and finalized the 2019 international racing calendar.   One of the highlights of the week was the visit of the brand new LMF-UIM Youth Training Centre which had been inaugurated a few months ago in Jounieh by UIM President Dr. Raffaele Chiulli and the President of the Lebanese Motorboat Federation, Admiral Edmond Chaghoury. On this occasion the Chairman of the UIM Youth Development   Programme, John Puddifoot presented local instructors and young trainees who had completed the UIM Propstars Courses in the Aquabike discipline with the corresponding Certificates. The UIM President said: "The UIM Propstars Academy in Lebanon is another important milestone on our way to establish UIM training and coaching platforms worldwide, attracting new generations and aiming at building a better world by educating through sport, by promoting participation, good governance, integrity and social inclusion."   The 91st UIM General Assembly welcomed a series of new UIM Members among which, with provisional status, the British Powerboat Association (BPBA), as from 1st Jan. 2019. Northern Ireland was granted full UIM Membership as from 1st Jan. 2019, while the UIM Membership provisionally granted earlier before to Indonesia, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and the Hungarian Jetski Federation was ratified by the UIM General Assembly with immediate effect.     Elections and Appointments   A significant part of the 91st UIM General Assembly was reserved for elections which produced the following results:   UIM COUNCIL: Jean-Marc Giraldi (MON, reelected), Christer Gustafsson (SWE, reelected and confirmed as UIM Treasurer), Jean-Marie Van Lancker (BEL, reelected), Li Ruilin (CHN, new member)     UIM International Commissions: (positions available for the remaining two years of the 2016-2020 period) COMINSPORT: Stuart Halley (USA) COMINOFF: Jeff Broman (USA), Federico Jorge Silva (POR) COMINSAFE: Gil Manuel Bras Pedroso (POR) COMINTECH: Jeff Broman (USA) PLEASURE NAVIGATION: Paul Micalef (MAL), Joaquim Amândio Santos (POR) UIM Committees: Formula Future: Petr Pylaev (Chairmanship mandate extended by UIM Council until 2020) Formula 1: Jeff Broman (USA, appointed by UIM Council as engine manufacturer representative until 2020)   The UIM Council appointed Luis Miguel Ribeiro (POR) as Chairman of the Formula 1 Committee, to take over from Fred Hauenstein (USA) for the two remaining years of the 2016-2020 period, while the President of the Lebanese Powerboat Federation, Admiral Edmond Chaghoury, was appointed Diplomatic Advisor to the UIM President.   The 91st UIM General Assembly also saw longstanding UIM Council Member and UIM official in many functions, as well as still active powerboat racer Fred Hauenstein from the USA being awarded with the "UIM Medal of Honour for the Work", the highest distinction the UIM Council can confer for outstanding merits in the International Powerboat Sport.   The same "UIM Medal of Honour for the Work" was conferred posthumously to late Daniel Dehaemers, in recognition of his unwavering dedication and contribution to the Powerboating Sport.

 

October 24 Press Release

BPBA British Power Boat Association BPBA Limited Cumbria House, Broad Street, Windermere, Cumbria, LA23 2AB, 

Company Reg Number 11547762 (+44) 015394 46832 BPBARacing.com Press Release 23-10-2018 BPBA British Power Boat Association

The BPBA are pleased to announce as from the 1st of January 2019 they will take over from the RYA as the National Authority of Power Boat Racing in Great Britain. We look forward to providing Knowledge, Fairness, Integrity, Enthusiasm & Transparency for the whole of the British Powerboat sport and to bring a fair national governing body for all. Ends BPBA - British Power Boat Association RYA - Royal Yachting Association

For any further information please contact.

BPBA Limited

hello@BPBARacing.com

Today (Oct 13) we hear that as of January 2019 the GB powerboat racing family have unified together to form the British Power Boat Association (BPBA).
Few would deny 2018 has been a historic period in the history of British powerboat racing. After almost a decade of unrest within our sport where the UK’s governing body RYA appeared to be doing little to promote British powerboat racing, it was left to the OCRDA (Offshore Circuit Racing Drivers Association) to take the dramatic step and break away from the RYA. They were at the time enjoying a successful domestic programme of racing with a fleet of teams that was growing throughout the season. Teams were enjoying their racing and an element of FUN had been re-introduced into their weekend activity. It soon became clear other clubs were keen to become involved in this new wave of evolution.

The bombshell was dropped mid-way through the season that the RYA was relinquishing its role as the UK’s governing body for powerboat racing and no longer represented Britain on the world governing body, the UIM.
Consultations  between Britain’s various clubs, including inshore were convened with a view to forming a brand new association to represent Britain at UIM level and the BPBA (British Power Boat Association) has been created which will represent almost every active club within the UK including circuit racing, Thundercats and OCR. They will take the RYA’s existing constitution, file books and paperwork as the starting point for the new Power Boat Racing authority. Once the UIM has decided upon the new UK representative, the RYA is committed to transferring all appropriate records and resources to the new body.The BPBA Board of Directors will comprise of a mix of non-executive and executive directors including Chair Chris Loney, Alastair Nayler and John Puddifoot, past RYA powerboat manager, will be a BPBA consultant together with Robert Irvine.
In their newly published leaflet the BPBA have expressed their intentions to ‘provide Knowledge, Fairness, Integrity, Enthusiasm and Transparency for the whole of the British Powerboat sport and to prove a fair national governing body for all’. They are apparently talking about possible UIM World & European races for 2020 including a World hydroplane round as well as an F1h2o race planned for London.
The future of our sport in the UK looks promising at last and the governing body BPBA is determined to promote British powerboat racing to a level it enjoyed three/four decades ago.