New challenges for Faroese athletes

If all goes to plan, Faroese athletes will be enjoying new challenges in the near future.

ÍSF, the Faroese Confederation of Sports and Olympic Committee, is preparing to apply for membership of the Games of the Small States of Europe (GSSE). 

The GSSE is a biennial multi-sport event featuring the National Olympic Committees of nine European small states.

Member nations all have a population of less than one million people. They are: Andorra, Malta, Cyprus, Monaco, Iceland, Montenegro, Liechtenstein, San Marino and Luxembourg. 

Approval more likely now

Jón Hestoy, vice president of ÍSF, says that last time Faroese membership of the GSSE was discussed, the answer was a clear no.

“The International Olympic Committee (IOC) was strict at the time about IOC recognition being a prerequisite for GSSE membership.”

At an IOC meeting in December, however, ÍSF was told that this requirement has now been relaxed somewhat.

New challenges

“The standard of competition is slightly higher than in the Island Games, but we would probably do reasonably well at this standard,” he adds.

“If we were to be accepted as a GSSE member nation, that would not mean we would pull out of the Island Games. It would just present some interesting new challenges for our athletes.”

Translated by prosa.fo