Athletics Malta chief Andy Grech elected as vice-president of Athletic Association of Small States of Europe

Athletics Malta president Andy Grech was handed a prestigious appointment during the European Athletics Congress that was held last weekend in Lausanne when he was elected as vice-president of the Athletic Association of Small States of Europe (AASSE).

For Grech, this was his first major appointment on the international scene since his appointment as Athletics Malta president.

The Athletic Association of Small States of Europe (AASSE) is a transnational organization representing the athletic interests of smaller European nations.

It was created following a proposal by the Cyprus, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Luxembourg delegations at the Congress of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in Barcelona in 1989.

During the congress, which also saw the participation of World Athletics president Sebastian Coe, small member countries voiced their concern on how small nations like Malta are absent in any decisions taken up by the European Athletics Council and the need for assistance over various situations.

Both World Athletics and the European governing body vowed to help smaller countries and support them unconditionally through various tailor-made opportunities.

During this congress/convention Athletics Malta representatives attended various workshops mainly regarding good governance, new anti-Doping protocols, EU funding, and an introduction to new variants of new athletic competitions.

Meanwhile, during the congress, Dobromir Karamarinov was officially elected as European Athletics president.

Karamarinov becomes the sixth European Athletics President after Adriaan Paulen (1970-1976), Arthur Gold (1976-1987), Carl-Olaf Homen (1987-1999), Hansjorg Wirz (1999-2015) and Svein Arne Hansen (2015-2020).

Karamarinov has served as interim president since March 2020 after Hansen, who died in June 2020, was unable to fulfill his duties following a stroke.