Dedication to a ‘Human-sized Event’
Guillaume Felli has started working on "making The World Games 2022 a great success”. The 39-year-old Swiss has been employed by the IWGA since 1 February 2022 as Head of Projects. In the IWGA Interview of the Month, Felli talks about his concrete contribution to delivering an amazing edition of TWG this summer in Birmingham, Alabama.
Usually you don’t assess a new job before you have had 100 days in office. Nevertheless, the question today: How was the first month as a member of The World Games family?
Guillaume Felli: It has been terrific so far: I managed to acquire lots of valuable information in a short period of time, thanks to the availability and professionalism of my colleagues. With less than 140 days before the opening ceremony of The World Games 2022, the IWGA has entered the final planning phase to make The World Games in Birmingham, USA a great success. Everyone involved in the preparation of these Games is extremely dedicated and busy at the moment, and I fully intend to contribute to delivering an amazing edition of TWG in Alabama this summer.
Your official title is ‘Head of Projects’. What does that mean in concrete terms? Which projects are you currently in charge of?
Guillaume Felli: My priority is to manage and oversee the reporting and evaluation of TWG, with the aim of collecting and analysing data that will help the IWGA to improve its product and operations further for the next editions. I will pay special attention to capturing and transferring the knowledge and experience from the Games to the next host city, and to establishing a master delivery plan that will further strengthen the cooperation between the IWGA and future organising committees.
Other projects include the development of The World Games sports series, a new format, and the further elaboration and implementation of the IWGA sustainability plan. Also the introduction of E-gaming at TWG (we will have an E-gaming Pavilion at The World Games Plaza in Birmingham, featuring three IWGA sports: Archery, Baseball/Softball and Racquetball).
Is there a project that you would say is particularly close to your heart?
Guillaume Felli: Although it is not always easily identifiable, the aim of most projects we work on is to improve further the services and products for participating athletes, which in my view are and should always be at the core of what we do.
What is the difference between working for a single sport federation and working for a multi-sport event?
Guillaume Felli: Coming from a multi-disciplinary federation (WDSF), I was already used to dealing with various and diverse stakeholders. For me, the major difference lies in the fact that the perspective drastically changes when you look after the interests of 30+ different sports rather than one.
Delivering a major multi-sport event (34 sports /58 disciplines / 223 medal events will be featured in Birmingham in 2022) allows you to widen your understanding of the needs, requirements and expectations of each sport and the parties involved. The IWGA takes all of these into consideration, while ensuring fair treatment for each sport, with the aim of delivering an event that will benefit all IWGA member federations and stakeholders.
Is there anything that has really surprised you?
Guillaume Felli: The amount of complex work that is carried out and delivered by a small number of people within the IWGA.
How did the change from WDSF to The World Games come about?
Guillaume Felli: I had the opportunity to work for the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF) for over five years, being the Secretary General for the last two years. During that time the WDSF achieved the ‘impossible’ in getting the discipline of Breaking into the medal programme of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the 2018 and 2026 Youth Olympic Games, the 2023 European Games and of course The World Games 2022, during which Breaking will, without any doubt, be a major attraction for the public in Birmingham.
After these five years spent with the WDSF, and the great successes that were achieved, I decided to move on to another challenge. The opportunity to join the IWGA came along, where I felt that I could really contribute to further developing this great event.
Can you name three words that you associate with The World Games or the IWGA?
Guillaume Felli: The official values of The World Games are Excellence, Sustainability and Inclusiveness. On top of these, what come to my mind are also: fun, innovation and human-sized event.
Is there a sport, other than dancing, that you would like to try?
Guillaume Felli: As an alpine skier I’m a big fan of speed and thrills, and would particularly be interested in trying parachuting and waterski jumping. I am also looking forward to watching Canoe Polo, which I have heard is extremely fun to follow.
The World Games is a multi-sport event staged every four years by the International World Games Association, organised with the support of the International Olympic Committee. The 11th edition of The World Games will be held in Birmingham, Alabama, USA, 7-17 July 2022. 3,600 athletes from 34 sports and over 100 countries will take part in The World Games.