International MMA body formed to unify amateur governance, target Olympic inclusion
Federation of Mixed Martial Arts has held early discussions with the IOC and plans to ‘work very hard’ to advance process
A unifying international governing federation for mixed martial arts will be launched on December 1, senior officials announced on Thursday at a press briefing.
The new body aims to bring greater unity to the sport’s amateur structures and boost its case for Olympic inclusion.
The Federation of Mixed Martial Arts (Fimma) was created in response to calls from athletes and national federations for a single cohesive body, said Gordon Tang, president of the Asian Mixed Martial Arts Association (Amma). Tang is a founding partner and major backer of Fimma.
“We are ready to collaborate with any organisation that shares a commitment to protecting and promoting the interests of MMA and its athletes,” he said.
At present, different international bodies such as the Global Association of Mixed Martial Arts and the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation run their own world and continental championships, set rules for amateur competitions and work with national federations at grass-roots level.
Conversations with these bodies were ongoing, with the intention of building a collaborative framework.
