The 2025 European Bowling Federation Congress officially began today at Hotel Exe Vienna, bringing together delegates from across Europe to discuss and vote on the federation’s key leadership positions and organizational matters.
During the Congress, representatives from national federations will review reports from the EBF Presidium, discuss proposed motions, and elect the EBF President and members of the Presidium for new terms. These elections are crucial, as they determine the federation’s direction and governance for the coming years, influencing decisions that affect all European bowling activities, championships, and policies.
As previously reported by BowlingLife, the current EBF President, Valgeir Gudbjartsson of Iceland, is the sole candidate for re-election after completing his first two-year term.
Alongside the presidency, the Congress will also elect new Presidium members, including one member serving until the 2027 Congress and two members serving until 2029.
However, this year’s Congress has drawn attention due to the candidacy of Sergey Lisitsyn, president of the russian bowling federation and current EBF Presidium member. Lisitsyn, who has publicly supported russia’s war in Ukraine and blamed the West for “Nazism in Ukraine,” has nominated himself for another term in the Presidium.
Following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Lisitsyn was removed from his duties as Championships Director for EBF events but retained his seat in the Presidium. The EBF has stated that, according to guidance from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), there are no current restrictions on russian individuals standing for election within international federations. EBF leadership has requested further clarification from the International Bowling Federation (IBF) on this matter, but neither the IBF nor the EBF has provided any update on whether that clarification has been received.
BowlingLife had planned to attend the Congress in Vienna as media representatives to provide coverage of the proceedings and elections. However, our request to participate was denied due to Congress procedures. We also applied to attend as guests, which could have been approved either by invitation of the President or by a majority vote of the Congress, as defined in section 1.6.2 (h) of the EBF Constitution:
“Guests may participate in the proceedings only at the invitation of the President or upon the majority approval by the Congress.”
Our request for guest participation was not raised for a vote, and we were therefore unable to attend the sessions.
BowlingLife will continue to bring updates and news from the EBF Congress once it concludes.
