Fighting Sports Authority launched, board appointed

With the appointment of its first board, the Nederlandse Vechtsportautoriteit (VA, the Dutch Fighting Sports Authority) has started its work. The Authority's primary task is to improve the regulation of the combat sports kickboxing, Thai boxing and mixed martial arts (MMA).

The VA builds on the work carried out in recent years by the steering group on the regulation of full contact combat sports (stuurgroep Regulering full contact vechtsporten), chaired by the mayor of Amsterdam, Eberhard van der Laan. Among other things, the Authority will advise municipalities by issuing guidelines on the organisation of combat sports galas. If organisers do not comply with these guidelines, a municipality may decide not to grant a permit. Preventing health risks is a key priority in this respect, for example the risk run by very young athletes as a result of punches and kicks to the head. Work will also start on a single, uniform competition record book for combat sports athletes. A licensing system for trainers, event organisers, coaches and referees is intended to raise the quality of the sector.

With these measures, the Vechtsportautoriteit aims to tackle the problems in the sector and increase the social value of combat sports. Athletes and spectators deserve a safe, well regulated and well organised sector, so that they can develop to their full potential.

Board
For the time being, the board of the Vechtsportautoriteit consists of five members: Herbert Dekkers (manager at a regional environmental agency, Omgevingsdienst), Peter Kwint (member of the House of Representatives, Tweede Kamer, for the Socialist Party, SP), Bas Pijnenburg (physician), Marcel Scholtes (researcher at the Ministry of Security and Justice, ministerie van Veiligheid en Justitie) and Diederik van Omme (lawyer). The board was appointed by a Supervisory Board (Raad van Toezicht) consisting of the mayor of Enschede, Onno van Veldhuizen, and lawyer and sports administrator Jan Loorbach. The Vechtsportautoriteit is an independent supervisory and enforcement organisation. In practice it will above all seek cooperation with municipalities, where event permits are concerned, and with combat sports organisations. The Vechtsportautoriteit is funded by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (ministerie van VWS).

Support
State Secretary Martin van Rijn (Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport): 'This is not only an important step towards better regulation and professionalisation of combat sports, but also towards the future of this sport. Everyone, young and old, must be able to practise combat sports in a safe and responsible way. The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport therefore wholeheartedly supports the Vechtsportautoriteit.'

Erik Lenselink, manager of Sports Development at NOC*NSF (the Dutch Olympic Committee and Dutch Sports Federation), also supports this initiative: 'With the establishment of the Vechtsportautoriteit, an important step has been taken to move full contact combat sports, which are also popular in the Netherlands, forward. NOC*NSF therefore wholeheartedly supports the new Authority in its pursuit of fair and, above all, safe full contact combat sports in the Netherlands.'

Tackling problems
The establishment of the Vechtsportautoriteit is a response to abuses in the sector. Five years ago, several mayors in the Netherlands sounded the alarm after a number of combat sports galas got out of hand, in one case even with fatal consequences. There proved to be links between the criminal underworld and legitimate business at some combat sports events. In addition, kickboxing matches between children are still taking place without expert supervision. Tackling problems in these hard combat sports is proving difficult because the level of organisation is not always adequate.

Fragmentation
The sector has been divided for years. Educational policy, quality and safety do not benefit from this. The Authority is trying to bring about improvement by putting the quality of the sport first. The aim is an even safer and better regulated combat sports sector, one that does justice to the top level that the Netherlands has been delivering in the ring and the cage for years.