The global governing body for track and field, World Athletics, has emerged as the highest-ranked federation in the latest governance review conducted by the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF).
The result places athletics at the forefront of Olympic sports administration, underlining a sustained push toward institutional reform across international sport.
In the 2025-26 assessment, World Athletics recorded 228 out of 240 points, improving from its previous 214 and securing first place among 36 international federations evaluated. Fourteen federations were placed in the top A1 governance band, but none surpassed athletics in overall scoring.
The latest outcome confirms a consistent upward trajectory for World Athletics, which has maintained its position in the A1 category for three consecutive reviews. This marks a significant rise from the 2016-17 cycle, when it was ranked in the B band with 113 out of 200 points.
Across all participating federations, scores ranged from 117 to 228, highlighting a widening performance gap between leading organisations and those still developing governance structures in key areas such as transparency and integrity.
A Decade of Reform Driving Governance Leadership
The rise of World Athletics is rooted in long-term structural reforms initiated after 2016 under the leadership of Sebastian Coe. Those changes reshaped the federation’s internal systems, placing greater emphasis on accountability, financial transparency and anti-doping enforcement.
Since then, governance has remained central to its strategic direction, with successive congress decisions reinforcing stricter regulatory frameworks and oversight mechanisms. The organisation’s recent strategic plan, “Pioneering Change 2024-2027,” continues to embed governance as a core operational pillar rather than a compliance exercise.
ASOIF’s findings also point to improvements in gender equality structures, safeguarding policies and development programming, all of which have contributed to the federation’s sustained top-tier ranking.
Strengthening Systems: Transparency and Electoral Oversight
A key driver of World Athletics’ high score has been its performance in transparency and decision-making processes.
The federation achieved near-maximum marks in both integrity and democratic governance, reflecting tighter controls on financial reporting, policy disclosure and internal accountability.
Looking ahead, attention is turning to governance continuity during leadership transitions. The organisation has prioritised the establishment of a transparent electoral process ahead of the 2027 World Athletics Congress, which will be supervised by an independent Election Oversight Panel designed to protect fairness and credibility in leadership selection.
These measures are intended to reduce ambiguity in governance transitions and strengthen confidence among member federations and external stakeholders, particularly as global sport faces increasing scrutiny over ethical standards.
Wider Impact Across Olympic Sports Governance
Beyond athletics, the ASOIF review signals broader progress across international sport governance systems, with multiple federations showing incremental improvements in areas such as whistleblowing frameworks, sustainability, and procurement oversight.
For World Athletics, additional recognition was given to its expanded development programme and the full implementation of the Athletics for a Better World Standard, alongside stronger safeguarding procedures introduced since the previous review cycle.
Speaking on the achievement, World Athletics Senior Vice President and ASOIF Council Member Ximena Restrepo revealed how elated they are to receive such recognition. “We are delighted that World Athletics has once again been recognised by ASOIF for our world-class governance structures.”
The findings reinforce a broader shift within Olympic sport, where governance is no longer treated as a background function but as a competitive benchmark shaping credibility, funding confidence and long-term institutional trust.
