Although the main press mostly ignores the IBAF congress in Lausanne, Switzerland, besides an Associated Press report, the first meetings started on Friday, while most of the delegates arrived at the scene. Continental Meetings on December 4th and 5th will kick off the gathering as well as the last meeting of the current Executive Committee. On Sunday, December 6th the actual congress takes place.
After an introduction at 10am on Sunday morning the resigning executive director of the MLBPA Donald Fehr and other eventual special guests are scheduled to address the delegates. These speeches are followed by the reports of President Dr. Harvey Schiller (in general and about the Olympics), Treasurer Rene Laforce, Secretary General John C. Ostermeyer, and reports on the Anti-Doping Program and the 2009 Baseball World Cup. Future events like the 2011 Baseball World Cup, a strategic relationship with professional Baseball, the IBAF Awards and some other things are later on the agenda.
The elections of the complete Executive Committee are scheduled for Sunday afternoon between 2pm and 5pm CET. A press conference afterward should reveal the new or old names at the top of the International Baseball Federation. We reported intensively on the race for IBAF President between Riccardo Fraccari and John C. Ostermeyer the past days. The campaigning in the background for the different posts is in full force. The latest rumor we heard, but wasn’t confirmed yet, was the withdrawal of former Dutch Federation President Ruud van Zetten as candidate to become treasurer.
