World Athletics launches campaign to shape future roadmap

PARIS -- Athletics' world governing body launched a Global Conversation survey campaign on Monday in order to help develop a "World Plan" for the sport over the rest of the decade.

According to an official press release, World Athletics is inviting the entire international athletics community to participate in the Global Conversation to contribute insight and feedback.

The survey campaign, which will run for six weeks, is available in 12 different languages for member federations, athletes, coaches, officials, fans, schools, meeting directors, partners and media.

"Today, we are embarking on an unprecedented Global Conversation with all those who love our sport and want to have a say in its future," said Sebastian Coe, president of World Athletics.

"The global pandemic has highlighted the need and desire of governments and communities to keep fit and healthy. Athletics, as the most accessible and participated sport on the planet, has a key role in helping to achieve this."

"Through this global engagement phase, I want to hear from everyone who cares about athletics and about health and fitness. Our strength as a sport lies in the diversity of our community and we need to hear the voices of our key stakeholders in all of our 214 countries and territories in order to develop a plan that fully represents our global aspirations for athletics to grow and thrive over the coming years," Coe said.

World Athletics has committed to developing a World Plan for athletics for the period 2022-2030. A draft plan will be developed for presentation to the World Athletics Council in the middle of the year. Once the draft plan is accepted, a final plan will be distributed to member federations for formal approval at the biennial World Athletics Congress in November 2021.

"The World Plan for Athletics 2022-2030 will be a key document for development and direction shaping of the sport, as it will be a roadmap setting out the vision, objectives and mission of global development of athletics," said World Athletics Council member Wang Nan.

As vice president of the Chinese Athletics Association (CAA), Wang added that he believed the World Plan will be of great importance for the CAA to help better promote the sport in China.

Athletics, especially road running, has become increasingly popular in China over the past decade, and has attracted tens of millions participants every year, playing a significant role in the country's National Fitness program.

"The World Plan will help the CAA to analyze and preview the future development of athletics worldwide, giving us the guideline to make our own development plan and promote more Chinese people to embrace the sport and lead a healthy lifestyle," Wang added.?