22 - Record claims

h3. Proposal from

Richard Meredith-Hardy, CIMA President

h3. Proposal title

International record claims must be ratified as a national record first.

h3. Existing text

_none_

h3. New text

{panel}
S10 3.16.4 {color:#ff0000}To be eligible as a World Record, the performance must have been recognized as a National record by the NAC concerned{color}
{panel}

h3. Reason

This provision is currently in GS 6.1.2 but there is a move to delete it.

This subject came up at the 2011 CASI meeting and the CIMA President gave very good reasons why it was a bad idea for CIMA. The [pre-meeting notes, item 9|cimaBureau:CASI 2011 pre meeting notes] conclude:
* If the ancient link between National & World claims is broken then there will be a proliferation of national records which exceed the World record.
* This devalues FAI World records, and in particular, *Microlight & Paramotor* ones.

And when it came to a vote, the proposal failed.

It is *again* in the October 2012 CASI meeting agenda, and for the same reasons, which are nothing to do with CIMA. (see [CASI Agenda, Annex 2|cimaBureau:CASI meeting 2012^CASI_agenda_2012.pdf]) but its effect on Microlight and Paramotor record claims could be permanently detrimental.

World Microlight and Paramotor record claims from NACs have a particularly poor history of being rejected by FAI. The *only* check on this is the fact that all claims must be ratified as a national record first. If this requirement is removed then it essentially opens a floodgate of claims to FAI which won't have been checked properly, and they will either be accepted by FAI, potentially devaluing all records, or create a terrible lot of extra and unnecessary work for Secretariat in having to refer these unchecked claims back to the submitting NAC.

There are other, more subtle consequences too. It allows NACs to relax their checking of National record claims. This means that a pilot could have the record X ratified as a national record to some lesser standard which causes it to fail as a World claim, but it can safely still stand as a national record.

In the first instance, if that national record exceeds the world record this won't stop the holder claiming 'world record' even though it is not (most people will still believe it is). This devalues FAI's authority as 'keeper of World records'.

In the second instance, The same NAC can now file a later World claim less than national record X but exceeding the current World Record. This makes a real muddle of that NACs National and World records and was previously the 'check' which meant it couldn't be done at least without some embarrasment and back-peddaling internal to the NAC, now it can.