FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 7, 2020
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, USA — The World Lacrosse Board of Directors convened today via videoconference for its monthly meeting, during which it took the following actions:
The Board of Directors unanimously approved a recommendation from Management that the World Lacrosse Men’s U19 World Championship, originally scheduled for July 9-18, 2020 in Limerick, Ireland, be rescheduled and reformatted, as follows:
• The World Championship now will be held in the Summer of 2021 in Limerick, Ireland. The exact dates are to be determined;
• The event age eligibility will be raised to U20, with certain dispensations still allowed. The lower age for eligibility will remain 16 years old;
• National Teams that had not originally entered the event for 2020, but have an interest in doing so for 2021, will be considered by World Lacrosse.
The Board expressed its appreciation to Michael Kennedy, Chair of the Limerick Organizing Committee, the leaders of World Lacrosse member National Governing Bodies, and the athletes, coaches and families who have been preparing to compete in the World Championship for their ongoing flexibility and commitment to the event.
The recommendation to reschedule the event for 2021 and to adjust the age classification was made following consultation by Management with member-National Governing Bodies and Continental Federations, which included individual consultation, a written survey for participating countries and two virtual “Town Hall Meetings”.
The Board of Directors confirmed there will be no change to the date for the 2021 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship, which will be held as scheduled from July 7-17, 2021 in Towson, Maryland, USA.
World Lacrosse Management will work with the Blue Skies Working Group, member-National Governing Bodies and Continental Federations to consider further revisions to the World Championship calendar, beginning in 2022, and bring those recommendations forward to the Board of Directors and General Assembly for approval. The Blue Skies Working Group was appointed by World Lacrosse President Sue Redfern to examine possible changes to the overall structure and format for World Championship events.
Chief Executive Officer Jim Scherr presented a revised operating budget for 2020, the key features of which include the following:
• for member-National Governing Bodies experiencing financial difficulties brought about by the global pandemic, World Lacrosse will consider requests to forgo the payment of membership dues in 2020, subject to review and approval by the Development Committee and Management;
• a voluntary reduction in staff compensation, along with reductions in travel, meetings and other business-related expenses;
• the creation of a new fund to provide grants to member-National Governing Bodies whose operations and/or sport development efforts have been significantly disrupted as a result of the global pandemic brought about by the COVID-19 virus. The process for submitting grant requests will be announced in the coming weeks, and requests will be reviewed and approved by the Development Committee and Management.
The Board of Directors unanimously approved the new operating budget for 2020, which calls for a significant reduction in overall planned expenses and a reallocation of certain funds.
Finally, the Board of Directors unanimously approved a recommendation from Management that the 2020 World Lacrosse General Assembly be held in the Fourth Quarter of this year in a virtual format, rather than in-person. The exact dates for the General Assembly are to be determined.
“The challenges brought about by the global pandemic are unprecedented for recent time, and it is essential for our response to be thoughtfully-developed, athlete-focused and fully aligned with the highest principles of athlete safety and well-being,” said World Lacrosse President Redfern. “On behalf of the Board of Directors, I’d like to extend our continued appreciation to our member-National Governing Bodies, Continental Federations and our lacrosse family around the world for stepping forward to play our part in combatting the global pandemic. I’d also like to thank Jim Scherr and our Management Team for bringing forward thoughtful solutions that will help our organization navigate these unprecedented challenges, while not losing sight of our longterm ambition.
“Our Board of Directors strongly encourages our members to continue adhering to the advice of your local public health authorities. By doing so, you are playing an important role in bringing our world one step closer to that day when sport returns, and you are honoring the commitment being made each and every day by health care professionals and volunteers around the world,” added President Redfern.
Media Contact: Darryl Seibel
Email: dseibel@worldlacrosse.sport
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About World Lacrosse
World Lacrosse is the international federation for men’s and women’s lacrosse, responsible for providing effective leadership and governance of the sport internationally while supporting the continued growth of lacrosse worldwide. In November 2018, World Lacrosse was officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee. The President of World Lacrosse is Sue Redfern of England.
