World Archery derecognises Mexican archery federation

The Federacion Mexicana de Tiro con Arco is no longer recognised as World Archery’s national member association in Mexico following an official notice issued to the country’s sports minister Ana Gabriela Guevara and CONADE.

It is in response to the outcome of a judicial case against the former president of the federation, Efi Sanchez, who has been jailed for misuse of public funds.

The ruling means that the national federation is no longer eligible to receive any funding from CONADE, which is used to send teams to international events, requiring the establishment of a brand-new organisation that fully complies with the principles of good governance.

World Archery has recommended creating two committees to manage the sport in the wake of the Mexican federation’s derecognition.

An operations committee consisting of former athletes, current technical staff and a CONADE representative will manage the budget issues by the ministry for the national team, run selection processes and administer entries to international tournaments.

This will ensure Mexican archers’ participation at major events, including the campaign for Olympic qualification that starts in mid-2023.

The creation of a new national archery federation in Mexico will be the responsibility of a transition committee, with representatives from CONADE, World Archery, World Archery Americas, the Mexican Olympic Committee and Mexican athletes.

It will draft the organisation’s constitution and inaugural strategic plan, and hold its first general assembly, at which officer elections will take place.

World Archery will approve the compositions of both committees following proposals by CONADE.

Mexico has been one of archery’s most successful nations over the last decade, winning three medals at the Olympics since 2012. The country led the medal table at the recent Pan American Championships, winning six of the 10 titles in Santiago.

The 2022 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final was held in the Mexican city of Tlaxcala.