While the message was still upbeat as of 10 March, when the FAI Skydiving Commission communicated that there was no indication that the Indoor World Cup in Charleroi, BEL, would need to be canceled due to COVID-19 travel restrictions and that all competitions would be held as planned, this could have changed after the POTUS announcement of a few hours ago.
From 13 March 2020, the U.S. starts banning travel from Europe to the United States due to the coronavirus outbreak. While the restriction does exempt US citizens returning home from Europe at this point, the State Department is – according to the Washington Post – already looking at lifting its travel advisory for the whole of Europe to an alert Level 3: “Reconsider Travel” ... In any case, things are unlikely to get better anytime soon. I recommend that everyone read the article "Coronavirus: Why You Must Act Now" by Tomas Pueyo.
The main reason for these lines, however, is an altogether different one. During Session VI "Bringing It Together" at the recent summit, I presented an innovative concept that we had developed and used in DanceSport to qualify the participants in the 2018 Youth Olympic Games: digital qualifying! It was highly acclaimed by all the stakeholders, the International Olympic Committee included.
Instead of traveling to far-away locations to perform in front of a panel of judges, the young breakers stayed at home and uploaded a recording of their performances to a streaming platform set up for this purpose. The judges assessed the recordings right on this platform and established an official standing for the worldwide qualifying. More than 1,000 videos were submitted and judged.
A set of specific rules governed the process and step-by-step instructions for the breakers to record the 45-second video featuring their best skills made it understandable for all.
With the coronavirus closing in on the World Cup and making its cancelation an ever more likely option, why not look at emulating the successful formula – at least for some of the events? Think outside the box and continue to cross all borders!
This article was followed up on Friday 13 March with "Digital Power," a second part that looks at what let DanceSport's governing body to consider true innovation.
This article was followed up on Friday 13 March with "Digital Power," a second part that looks at what let DanceSport's governing body to consider true innovation.
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