Ingmar De Vos

Ingmar De Vos (born 5 August 1963) is a Belgian professional sports manager serving as the thirteenth and current President of the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (Fédération Equestre Internationale) (FEI). Educated in sports management, business administration and international law, he began his career in mainstream politics before working for the Belgian Equestrian Federation and supported that nation's equestrian teams at the Olympics and the FEI World Equestrian Games. He was one of the founders of the European Equestrian Federation and became secretary-general of the FEI in 2011 prior to being elected President of the organisation in 2014.

Ingmar De Vos
13th President of the
Fédération Equestre Internationale
Assumed office
14 December 2014
Preceded byHRH Princess Haya
Personal details
Born (1963-08-05) 5 August 1963
NationalityBelgian
SpouseSabine Cox
ChildrenOlivier, Philippe, Jacco and Flo

Education and Career[1]

Studying at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (V.U.B), De Vos began his university education gaining master's degrees in Political Science (department International Relations) and International and European Law. He also studied business administration and later went on to gain further degrees including Sports Management from the Belgian Olympic Academy.

Following completion of his Masters in International and European law, De Vos joined the Belgian Senate,[2] as an advisor to the Liberal Group.

Equestrian organisation management career

Ingmar De Vos began his career within Equestrian Sports Management in 1990 at the Belgian Equestrian Federation,[3][4] first taking on the role of Managing Director which was later combined with the Secretary General role.[5] In his time at the Belgian Equestrian, De Vos was successful in modernising the organisation and administration including the restructuring of the organisation to allow the regional federations to receive government funding.

Alongside his core responsibilities as Managing Director and Secretary General, De Vos was also Head of the Belgian Equestrian Delegation at the Olympic Games from 2000-2008 in Sydney, Athens and Beijing as well as heading up the Belgian Delegation at the first five FEI World Equestrian Games between 1990 and 2010. He is also on the board of the Belgian National Olympic Committee.

He was co-founder of the European Equestrian Federation (EEF) in 2010 and was also Secretary General from 2010 until 2011, when he joined the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI), world governing body for horse sport.[3][4]

From 2011 to 2014, Ingmar De Vos became Secretary General of the FEI which headquarters are based in Lausanne (SUI) he was elected FEI President in Baku (AZE) and in 2014,re-elected for a second four-year term in Manama (BRN) in 2018. On 13 November 2022 De Vos was re-elected to serve a third and final term as FEI President in Cape Town (RSA).[6][7]

Since 2017, Ingmar De Vos is Member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), where he is currently member of three Commissions: the Legal Affairs Commission since 2018, the Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Commission and the Coordination Commission for the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad Los Angeles 2028 both since 2019. He also served in the past as a member of the Digital and Technology Commission (2018-2019).

He is a member of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) Governance Task Force since 2016 and became an ASOIF Council Member in April 2019.

In early November 2018 he was appointed to the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) Council and, since 2018, as the GAISF representative on the 12-member World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Executive Committee. He became the ASOIF representative on the WADA Executive Committee and Foundation Board in 2018. He remained a member until the organisation’s dissolution which was decided in November 2022.[8]

From 2018 to 2022, Ingmar De Vos served on the Foundation Board of the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA).[9] Since 2018, he has been a member of the WADA Executive Committee.

In March 2017, he became a UN International Gender Champions (IGC),[10] joining a leadership network that brings together female and male decision-makers determined to break down gender barriers and make gender equality a working reality in their spheres of influence.

In 2014, Ingmar De Vos became Vice-President of the International Horse Sports Confederation (IHSC), an umbrella body created by the FEI and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) – the first formal vehicle for cooperation between the world’s leading governing bodies for equestrian sport. He served as IHSC President from December 2019 to April 2022, and will once again take on the role of IHSC Vice-President for a two year period.

Fédération Equestre Internationale

Ingmar De Vos joined the FEI as Secretary General in 2011[11] during the second presidential term of HRH Princess Haya. During his time as Secretary General he worked closely with HRH Princess Haya, implementing a number of reforms to improve lines of communication with the National Federations and stakeholders. One of the key steps in this process was the creation of the FEI Sports Forum in 2012[12] to provide a platform for all stakeholders to discuss matters relating to the sport in an open and transparent manner.

He was also instrumental in the restructuring of FEI's Commercial strategy which subsequently resulted in the signing of the organisation's biggest commercial deal with the Swiss watchmakers, Longines.[11][13][14][15]

Following the decision of FEI President HRH Princess Haya not to run for a third term,[16][17] Ingmar De Vos stepped forward as one of six candidates. The Presidential election took place at the 2014 FEI General Assembly in Baku, Azerbaijan where De Vos was elected in the first round of voting. A total of 131 National Federations voted:[3][4][18][19][20][21][22]

FEI World Breeding Jumping Championships for Young Horses, Lanaken (2015) from the left: Judy Ann Melchior, Rik Van Miert (WBFSH), Ingmar De Vos (FEI), J. Pijarowski (KSPSK)
Presidential CandidateVotes
Ingmar De Vos (BEL)98
Pierre Durand (FRA)21
Pierre Genecand (SUI)6
John McEwen (GBR)6

Note: The two other candidates, Ulf Helgstrand (DEN) and Javier Revuelta del Peral (ESP) withdrew from the election process prior to the vote.

Ingmar De Vos' Presidential manifesto[23] focused on five main pillars: "Serving our community", "Sport: our core business", "Equestrian Sport in the Olympics", "FEI Solidarity" and "Horses as our Partners". These five pillars will serve as his blueprint for the four-year presidential term. De Vos' manifesto speech prior to his election can be seen here.[24]

As FEI President, De Vos has been very active; he attended Australian Sport Achievement Awards Night in July 2015[25][26] and in the same month visited the Bulgarian Federation Summer Camp supported by FEI Solidarity. Watch the FEI Reportage to learn more about the 4 pillars of FEI Solidary.[27] On 7 December, an FEI delegation composed of Ingmar De Vos, Sabrina Ibáñez, FEI Secretary General, John Madden, FEI 1st Vice-President and Chair of the Jumping Committee and Frank Kemperman, Member of the Executive Board and Chair of the Dressage Committee were received at Al-Safriya Palace by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa. De Vos presented King Hamad's with the first FEI Decoration in recognition of his pioneering role and dedicated efforts to promote the equestrian sport, preserve its heritage and support FEI governing body.[28]

On 20 November 2018, during its General Assembly held in Manama (BRN), Ingmar De Vos, uncontested candidate, was re-elected as FEI President for a four-year terms.,.[29][30] In a powerful acceptance speech.[31][32] after an extended standing ovation from the delegates, De Vos once again expressed his belief in “our sport, in our community and in our potential”. He continued by saying that these are exciting times for equestrian, with a fan base which is clearly diversifying, and seven unique disciplines to promote concluding with, “the sky really is the limit!”

On 13 November 2022 De Vos was re-elected to serve a third and final term as FEI President with an overwhelming majority. The presidential election took place during the FEI Hybrid General Assembly held in Cape Town (RSA) and virtually, allowing National Federations unable to attend in-person to vote online in real time. Standing unopposed for a second time, the 59-year-old received widespread support for his last four-year term, which will run until 2026.[33]

International Olympic Committee

On 15 September 2017, Ingmar was elected as a Member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) during the IOC Session in Lima, he is currently member of two Commissions, the Legal Affairs Commission and the Los Angeles 2028 Coordination Commission, while he has also served in the past as a member of the Digital and Technology Commission.

Ingmar De Vos is a member of the Governance Task Force set up by the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) in 2016.[34] and since April 2019 he is also an ASOIF Council Member.

In early November 2018 he was appointed to the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) Council and as the GAISF representative on the 12-member World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Executive Committee. As of 1 January 2020, he became the ASOIF representative on the WADA Executive Committee and Foundation Board. He is also on the board of the Belgian National Olympic Committee. In December 2021,[35] he was appointed Sport Accord, Executive Committee Member representing Global Association of International Sports Federations GAISF.

References
  1. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 March 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. "Ingmar De Vos was unanimously re-elected as FEI President for the next four years at the FEI General Assembly in Manama today". Everything Horse. 20 November 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  3. "Ingmar De Vos sweeps to win in FEI presidential election". Horsetalk.co.nz. 14 December 2014. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  4. "Ingmar De Vos Elected As FEI President". The Chronicle of the Horse. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  5. FRBSE-KBRSF. "Equibel". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  6. "De Vos approved for final FEI term, federation's 2021 revenues detailed". 14 November 2022.
  7. Coffrini, Fabrice. "Ingmar De Vos set for a final term as president of the International Equestrian Federation". Belga News Agency.
  8. "DISSOLUTION OF GAISF APPROVED AT EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL ASSEMBLY, RECORD ATTENDANCE OF MEMBERS, NEXT STEPS CLARIFIED". 16 December 2022.
  9. Morgan, Liam (15 November 2022). "De Vos appointed as Baumann replacement on WADA Executive Committee". Inside de Games.
  10. "Ingmar De Vos, President, Fédération Equestre Internationale". March 2017.
  11. "ASOIF - News". The Association of Summer Olympic International Federations. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  12. "Inaugural FEI Sports Forum Focuses on Show Jumping on Day One". Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  13. "Longines & FEI Sign Sponsor Deal Worth At Least $130 Million Over 10 Years". Dressage News. 15 January 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  14. Emmett, James (16 January 2013). "FEI signs record deal with Longines". SportsPro Media. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  15. "FEI signs biggest sponsorship deal in history with Longines". inside the games. 27 December 2012. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  16. "Statement from FEI President HRH Princess Haya". FEI. 12 August 2014. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  17. "Princess Haya will not stand for third term". Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  18. "AIPS Web Site - Belgium's Ingmar De Vos elected FEI President". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  19. "Ingmar De Vos: Baku will be in memory of FEI as a city where new FEI president was elected". Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  20. "Ingmar De Vos, 14ème Président de la Fédération Equestre Internationale / Actualités Fédérales / Accueil / Sites FFE - Portail FFE". 17 February 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  21. "Belgium's Ingmar de Vos is New FEI President". Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  22. "IEOA, International Equestrian Organisers' Alliance". Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  23. "Ingmar de Vos FEI Presidential Candidate" (PDF). Canada Horse. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  24. Ingmar De Vos - Election Speech - About FEI. 29 June 2015. Retrieved 24 February 2016 – via YouTube.
  25. "FEI President to attend Australian Sport Achievement Awards Night". Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  26. "Equestrian Australia Sport Achievement Awards - Equestrian Australia". Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  27. "#FEIReportage - Solidarity". FEI.org. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  28. "Bahrain News Agency - Crown Prince meets President of the International Federation for Equestrian Sports". Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  29. Etchells, Daniel (20 November 2018). "De Vos unanimously re-elected as FEI President". inside the games. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  30. "Executive Transactions: Ingmar De Vos Re-Elected As FEI President". Sports Business Daily. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  31. "About FEI". youtube. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  32. Ingmar De Vos: "These are exciting times" FEI Ordinary General Assembly 2018 – via YouTube.
  33. Coffrini, Fabrice. "Ingmar De Vos set for a final term as president of the International Equestrian Federation". Belga News Agency.
  34. "ASOIF Governance Task Force". 18 November 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  35. "Ivo Ferriani Confirmed as New SportAccord President". 14 December 2021.
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