EN
HR
BUDAPEST, September 11, 2019 – Budapest, a flourishing hive of top-level global sports competitions, will be the host of the 83rd AIPS Congress scheduled for February 3-6, 2020, while also promising a grand and exotic ceremony for the 2nd AIPS Sport Media Awards on the night of February 3.
It will be the fourth time that the Central European city, in all of its architectural grandeur, will have the pleasure of welcoming delegates to the most important gathering that involves sports journalists across the globe - after 1965, 1992 and 1999.
The Hungarian capital was officially announced as the host of the Congress and Awards ceremony today, September 11, at a press conference organised by the Hungarian Sports Journalists Association in Budapest.
Hungarian Minister of State for Sport Dr. Tünde Szabó, AIPS President Gianni Merlo, HSJA President György Szöllősi, Rector of the University of Physical Education Prof. Dr. H. C. Mocsai Lajos, and Dr. Zsuzsa Csisztu Vice President of HSJA and AIPS EC Member, all addressed the members of the press present.
Speaking on behalf of the Hungarian government, Dr. Szabó emphasised the importance sports because, according to her, it can be a very good answer to societal challenges. She expressed the government's intention to elevate sports and their willingness to work with sports journalists and the HSJA to reach that goal, considering that sports journalism is a great way to reach the people.
Merlo expressed his gratitude to the Hungarian government and the HSJA for showing commitment towards ensuring an amazing occasion next year.
“'Why Budapest?’ Because I was sure that we can organise a really top Congress here. And I found full cooperation in the Hungarian government and the HSJA.”
“I think that it is important for us as an association to not only give importance to the value of sports, but also to defend the value of sports because sports is education, sports is culture and it is something that opens the mind of the young generation.
“And our association is one of the few that can put together so many different cultures, because it is not so easy to put together people from different cultures to discuss one goal. But sports is able to put journalists from different countries to talk together and find a solution.
“I was present in the Congress of 1992. It was something really special and very different, because it was the beginning of a new era for our association and we are very happy to come back here to relaunch our image and we will try to give to this Congress a special context with the AIPS Sport Media Awards.”
Founded in 1924, the International SportsPress Association (AIPS) has over the years established itself as the peak body for international sports media across the world and boasts of more than 150 member associations and nearly 10,000 individual members.
The AIPS Congress will cover a wide range of topics relevant to sports journalism and its professionals worldwide, with continental and executive meetings and input from jounalists from over 100 nations.
The AIPS Sport Media Awards are the highest international accolade in the sport media industry, introduced by AIPS in 2018 to celebrate sport media excellence and recognize the very best sport storytellers across all media platforms, from photography to video, from print to digital, from podcasts to sports blogs.
The first edition of the Awards ceremony was held in Lausanne in January 2019. The second edition is currently open for submissions and the deadline is October 17. The award winners across all the categories will be revealed in Budapest, in the presence of seasoned media professionals, sporting legends and high-profile sports administrators.
By Chibuogwu Nnadiegbulam - AIPS Media PHOTO by Maria Pia Beltran/AIPS Media
