Governing body FINA does not recognise LEN’s exclusion of Croatia and Portugal and has called on the Bureau to “apply fair and due process”.
The European governing body had voted to impose one-year suspensions on the two countries in November after they were accused of an unauthorised use of the LEN logo.
FINA has rejected that exclusion with LEN facing an Extraordinary Congress in February following a vote of no confidence at the Congress Meeting in Budapest in September.
The statement from FINA read:
“Today the FINA Bureau met to discuss a number of key topics. Amongst these was the constitutional issue within the European Aquatics Confederation (LEN).
“The FINA Bureau is particularly concerned by the action taken by LEN on 6 November 2021, namely the exclusion of two member associations, Portugal and Croatia, for one year.
“Following discussion within the FINA Bureau, and with the support of 6 independent legal opinions, the FINA Bureau voted to not recognise the actions taken by LEN for the following reasons:
- The actions did not follow correct due process.
- The actions were clearly politically motivated and driven by self interest.
- The actions go against the ethos of the new FINA leadership which embraces inclusivity, equality, integrity and democracy.
“With FINA’s determination, the Portugal and Croatia Federations shall maintain full rights of membership within LEN, including the right to attend with a voting right at forthcoming Extraordinary Elective Congress in Frankfurt, Germany on 5 February 2022, and the FINA Extraordinary Congress on 18 December 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE).
“FINA calls on LEN Bureau to apply fair and due process for all its acts now and in the future.”