The member clubs of the gymnastics association will elect the chairman for the next three-year term at the fall meeting to be held in Tampere this coming weekend. There are two candidates, Kaisa Vikkula and Mira Keränen.
Kaisa Vikkula has been the president of the Gymnastics Association for the previous six years, i.e. two terms. The journey has included successes, but also sadder things. A year ago, reported on the inappropriate coaching culture of the rhythmic gymnastics national team that had been going on for years.
Both the Olympic Committee and the Ministry of Education and Culture cut the Gymnastics Federation’s subsidies after the matter became public. The Gymnastics Association regretted the matter and admitted that the goal of gymnastics as a safe hobby had not been realized for everyone. The gymnastics association joined the sport’s joint centralized discipline of serious ethical violations and promised to draw up rules that outline more precisely how to secure body peace in coaching. Instructors and coaches were promised training on the topic.
Many hoped that the Norwegian Gymnastics Association would take a stronger responsibility in this matter. According to the sitting chairman, the culture change work is progressing.
– We have a responsibility to ensure that these things are maintained, and the goal is that during the next year, every gymnastics club will adopt its own responsibility program, the goal of which is to create a safe operating environment for every enthusiast. I believe that the cultural change is well underway, but it will take its own time in such a big sport, Vikkula states.
According to the 63-year-old Vikkula, the work on developing the culture of gymnastics is in progress, and he wants to influence especially the structures. He is still motivated to work actively with the sport.
– We have pushed internationally to raise the age limits in competitive activities. Guidelines have been made for children’s gymnastics, based on which children are allowed to be children for as long as possible. Positive pedagogy and keeping costs under control are important issues, says Vikkula.
Transparency has to be the best
Mira Keränen has sat on the board of the Gymnastics Association since last year and would now be ready to step into the demanding shoes of the chairman. The 36-year-old Keränen, who won the World Cup and European Championship gold in competitive aerobics, wants to be a bold and collaborative chairman who makes reforms.
– Now the thought and answer has often been to do it this way, because it has always been done this way before. We have to move on from that and there must be a will to achieve top performances at the federal level as well. There must be the best kind of union in openness, the level of activity and ambition must also be raised to a new level in renewal, Keränen commented.
Keränen also considers matters of responsibility very important. The union led by him would lead the discussion and take a bigger role as an opener of social discussion. He would also like to include former top athletes in the development work.
– Here, the sports federations are certainly able to cooperate even more closely, and we have to bravely have those difficult and demanding discussions together. The gymnastics association has a lot of good guidelines, but everyday activities and cultural change require a completely different approach. Responsibility is borne from the front, says Keränen.
The nomination committee’s proposal for the president of the Gymnastics Association is Kaisa Vikkula.