With two days left until Sunday’s annual meeting, SVT Sport meets Karin Mattsson in Östersund.
This summer, Mattsson announced that she wants to step down from the role of chairman, with the justification that she feels that she does not have the opportunity to prioritize the job as chairman of the ski association, in combination with other assignments.
At Sunday’s annual meeting, a new chairman will therefore be elected and it is between two candidates. Jonas Bauer, proposed by the election committee, and Anders Furbeck, proposed by the districts in Götaland.
Furbeck was nominated this week as a counter-candidate to Bauer, as there are different phalanxes that see the union’s future differently and thus want to see different leaders for the union.
– I have no views at all on the election of people, neither chairman nor members, other than that I wish it to be a well-established election that Skisverige feels it stands behind, says Karin Mattsson, and elaborates further:
– Because it will be so much easier for the chairman and the board to work then. So that is my wish. Then I have respect for whatever choice you choose.
Reports have created different camps
This year’s board work has been marked by a conflict that SVT Sport has reported on before. It has led to both police reports and a case in the National Sports Committee, and the conflict has created different camps in Skis Sweden.
– It has, just as you say, been a very difficult year, and it is a very unfortunate situation that we are in. So it has taken a toll on many people this year, she says, and tells us that she has studied her own role in the conflict:
– It is always easy when you have a conclusion, but I have thought a lot about what could have been done differently. I have spoken to some that I know, but I think I would like to stay there, I really don’t want to talk about other members.
Looking positively at the future
She is honest that the internal conflict has damaged the Swedish Skiing Association’s brand, and affected the board’s work and what they have focused on.
– An awful lot of time has been spent on things other than what we might want to work on. It definitely has.
But even if Karin Matsson admits that there is a split in the skiing movement, she wants to look positively at the future.
Hear more from Karin Mattsson about the future of the association in the player above.