IKF President in Turkey

IKF President Jan Fransoo was in Turkey this week for informal meetings with the Turkish Development Sports Federation, the umbrella organization responsible for the development of sports in Turkey, including korfball.

He met with the leadership team of Turkish korfball, lead by TDSF President Hassan Özturk, to discuss the development within Turkey and the international participation of Turkish teams, following the late withdrawal of Turkey from last year’s  IKF European Korfball Championship in the Netherlands. Recognizing the complex governance situation, a common vision was developed towards the participation of Turkish representative teams in international events.

Yuksel Abdikoglu, TDSF President Özturk, IKF President Fransoo, Lale Güler at the informal meeting in Ankara

Development of korfball in Turkey has been very strong, with dozens of universities now having a korfball team, and the Turkish club championship having been well-established. The TDSF is now taking next steps, which include the development of the club championship into a more extended league, and – in collaboration with the Turkish School Sports Federation – organizing the first high school korfball championship in the country, where about 60 teams are expected to take part. In the common vision between IKF and TDSF, the strong national development should also further strengthen the international participation and results of Turkish representative teams.