High-profile patrons for the 22nd IAKS Congress

IOC President Jacques Rogge, IPC President Sir Philip Craven, Sportaccord President Hein Verbruggen and Germany’s Minister of the Interior Dr. Hans-Peter Friedrich will be serving as patrons for the 22nd IAKS Congress. Dr. Stephan J. Holthoff-Pförtner, President of the IAKS, is gratified by the top-flight support for the world's leading platform for sports and leisure facilities: “The renewed cooperation with the International Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee, Sportaccord and the German Federal Government augurs well for the exchange of information among experts and decision-makers from all over the world at the 22nd IAKS Congress.”

The call for papers completed by the end of February also promises interesting congress talks and discussions. The IAKS organising team received over 110 suggestions from all over the world. A large number of the submitted subjects are concerned with aspects of sustainability in the design, construction and operation of sports and leisure infrastructure – be they large stadiums, training facilities, swimming pools or local-authority gyms and sports grounds. Taking the example of the sports facilities for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Vancouver, London and Sochi, the focus will be on modular construction methods, energy- and resource-conserving technologies and successful operating strategies. Other key topics will be the international harmonisation of construction methods and quality requirements, e.g. in barrier-free construction and for synthetic turf pitches.

The 22nd IAKS Congress is taking place in Cologne from 26th to 28th October 2011 together with the internationally leading trade fair FSB (Amenity Areas, Sports and Pool Facilities).