Statute of the Amateur Sports Federations of Iran - 2002 edition
The Statute of the Amateur Sports Federations of the Islamic Republic of Iran, adopted by the Council of Ministers on 1 May 2002 — the instrument that determines the legal nature, objectives and organs of every sports federation in the country.
| Adoption | 1 May 2002 — Council of Ministers |
| Promulgation | 26 June 2002 — no. 49660/T/26429-H |
| Proposed by | Physical Education Organisation — letter of 29 April 2002 |
| Legal basis | Paragraphs 11 and 12 of the single article of the bill amending the Act on the List of Non-Governmental Public Institutions and Bodies, adopted 1997 |
What this statute determines
Article 1 establishes the legal nature of the federations, and that same article is the most important provision of the instrument. Amateur sports federations are treated as non-governmental public institutions possessing legal personality, constituted in accordance with the sporting policy and principles laid down by the Olympic Charter, with observance of Islamic proprieties and national requirements, and as the highest competent authority in each sporting discipline.
Article 2 enumerates the objectives: encouraging the younger generation and the various sections of society to maintain their fitness and health and providing the conditions for their participation in regular and rule-governed sporting activity; and creating the conditions necessary for the presence of champions, veterans, referees, coaches and other participants in sport in international arenas both inside and outside the country.
Three provisions that operate in real cases
- Separate legal personalityA federation is an independent party to litigation and to contracts; it is not a department of a ministry. This point is decisive in financial and employment disputes.
- Express reference to the Olympic CharterThe sporting principles governing a federation are drawn from the Olympic Charter, and that reference is the bridge between the domestic legal system and the international obligations of sport.
- Highest authority in the disciplineA federation is the highest competent authority in its own discipline; the decision of any other body in that discipline must be measured against this competence.
This statute is also the basis of the subsequent implementing regulations: the regulations on the election of federation presidents expressly take their definitions from this instrument.
Who this document matters to
Every sports federation in the country, the provincial boards and the affiliated clubs operate within the framework of this statute. For the sports lawyer, this instrument is the starting point of any domestic case: the competence of the deciding organ, the legal nature of the opposing party, and the limits of the supervision exercised by the Ministry of Sport are all derived from this text.