ROWING’S MEMBER NATIONAL FEDERATION LEADERS DISCUSS FUTURE OF THE SPORT

The series of National Federations’ Conferences, organised by The World Rowing Federation, FISA, continued with the fifth edition taking place in London yesterday, 6 March. More than 80 delegates representing 59 National Federations attended to discuss changes to the rules and governance of rowing which will be crucial to ensure the healthy future of the sport.

Participants heard presentations from FISA President Jean-Christophe Rolland, FISA Executive Director Matt Smith and IOC Sports Director Kit McConnell. In dedicated break-out sessions, delegates then discussed concrete proposals that will eventually be put to vote at the 2017 Extraordinary Congress.

In a presentation entitled “Driving Rowing’s Future”, Rolland explained the three strategic directions that FISA has identified to ensure rowing’s future: retain a strong position in the Olympic Movement, ensure the integrity of rowing and consolidate rowing’s position as a global citizen.

An important factor in retaining a strong position in the Olympic Movement is the alignment of FISA’s strategy with the 40 Olympic Agenda 2020 recommendations that were adopted by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in December 2014.

“FISA’s Strategic Plan already aligned with most of the elements of Olympic Agenda 2020 and the FISA Council was able to use the IOC’s recommendations to fine-tune our plans,” says Rolland.

McConnell joined the conference for the second year in a row to present the IOC­ perspective on the Olympic programme. McConnell raised key points including the switch from a sport-based Olympic programme to one that is event-based;, the limitation of the number of events at the Olympic Games to approximately 310 events; the limitation of the number of athletes at the Olympic Games to approximately 10,500; the IOC mandate to reach 50 per cent female participation at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; and the continued objective to increase universality across all events.

In order to put rowing in the best position to meet these requirements and ensure its strong position in the Olympic Movement, FISA started a multi-step process that will culminate with the 2017 FISA Extraordinary Congress in February next year. A two-thirds majority vote will be required in order to change any of the FISA statutes and rules, including Rule 37 which is the listing of events in rowing’s Olympic programme.

“The future of our sport depends on the success of this Extraordinary Congress. We need to evolve constantly to keep rowing strong and relevant. In order to succeed we need to have a constructive debate with and among our national federation leaders about the proposed changes. That is why we launched these conferences early on in the process” says Rolland.

FISA presented yesterday the first draft proposals for changes to FISA rules, including options for changes to the Olympic programme. In order for the federation leaders to exchange views, small groups of federations from all corners of the world were created to discuss and then provide feedback to the combined meeting.

Cristy Nurse (b), Lisa Roman, Jennifer Martins, Susanne Grainger, Christine Roper, Ashley Brzozowicz, Natalie Mastracci, Lauren Wilkinson (s), Lesley Thompson-Willie (c), Canada, Women’s Eight heat, 2015 World Rowing Cup II Varese, Italy
©FISA Igor Meijer

“We all know how sensitive, how important and how crucial it is when the discussions come to Rule 37 on the events in the Olympic programme,” says Rolland. “This is why we have started an analysis of the event principles for rowing and involved all of the key stakeholders in the discussion. We are in regular dialogue with the IOC and they will evaluate the rowing programme event by event. We need to have a strong rationale for each of our events; we cannot rely on history, but must be ready to adjust to new trends and a fast changing environment.”

The afternoon session focused on the second pillar: ensure the integrity of rowing. The factors addressed related to FISA’s governance structure. The FISA Governance Working Group was established a year ago and has been assessing FISA’s governance structure and evaluating it against the latest recommendations from ASOIF (the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations) and the IOC on good governance. The recommendations from the Working Group were presented as proposed changes to the FISA Statutes. The delegates were asked to discuss and provide feedback on these proposals which will form the basis of the Council’s recommendations to be presented at the 2017 Extraordinary Congress.

The next National Federations’ Conference will be held on 30 August 2016 at the 2016 World Rowing Senior, Junior and Under 23 Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands. This will be the last opportunity to discuss the proposals directly with the member federations, prior to the 2017 Extraordinary Congress which will take place in Tokyo, Japan from 9 to 12 February 2017.

ROYAL AHREND JOINS WORLD ROWING’S KAFUE CLEAN WATER INITIATIVE

The World Rowing Federation (FISA) is pleased to announce Royal Ahrend as the first Official Supplier to the Kafue River & Rowing Centre in Zambia. The Kafue Centre is a unique, multi-purpose facility to be operated by the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) which brings together water research, education and rowing.

Royal Ahrend is an international leader in office furniture committed to delivering contemporary and highly sustainable office lifestyles to corporate end-users around the world.

The Company will provide the Kafue Centre with a combination of cash and expertise to design the interior furnishings of the Centre, as well as supply all of the necessary furniture and furnishings to make the design a reality. Royal Ahrend has also committed to organise fundraising events in its key markets that will generate additional funds for the Kafue Centre.

“As a global company we are fully aware of fresh water issues that face all of us and are committed to the sustainable use of water in the production of our products,” says Royal Ahrend’s Vice President Jiri Kejval. “So it was an easy decision to put our support behind the Kafue Centre. We believe that this collaborative venture will play an important role in a enabling a wider and better understanding of the world’s water challenges and will help to open the door to similar projects that World Rowing and WWF will establish in other parts of the world. On a personal level, as a rower myself, water has always been an essential part of my life and I am committed to this project.”

“Royal Ahrend has enabled us to take a big step towards making the Kafue River & Rowing Centre a reality,” says FISA president Jean-Christophe Rolland, “and for this we are very grateful to Royal Ahrend and, especially to the initiative of Jiri. For FISA and WWF, this project is incredibly important – both for the sport of rowing and world-class water management research and we need this kind of valuable support. Already the rowing community has shown its dedication to clean water through a considerable number of individual donations.”

RECORD NUMBER OF ENTRIES FOR 2015 WORLD ROWING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Entries have now closed for the 2015 World Rowing Championships in Aiguebelette, France and FISA, the World Rowing Federation, is delighted to announce a record 1,300 athletes from 77 countries will be lining up to race at this year’s most prestigious rowing event.

The 2015 World Rowing Championships also acts as the main qualification regatta for the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games so athletes will not only be racing for World Championship titles, but also for the coveted 129 qualification spots for the Rio Olympics Games and the 24 spots for the Paralympic Games.

FISA President Jean-Christophe Rolland notes that the large number of entries is a reflection of the work that has gone into increasing rowing’s universality. “FISA has grown to 142 member federations and by the end of this year’s congress we will have at least 146,” says Rolland. “This growth internationally is reflected in the number of countries participating at the World Rowing Championships, and I am very pleased to welcome rowers from all corners of the globe and especially the newer rowing nations to Aiguebelette.”

“Having Olympic and Paralympic qualification spots available has also added to huge interest in this regatta,” says Rolland who won a gold medal in Aiguebelette in 1997, the last time the event was staged there.

The United States lead the way with the largest number of entries. They have entered boats in all 27 boat classes with the women’s eight their flagship crew. The US women’s eight has not lost a major race since 2006 with Canada being their nearest rival.

One of the largest fields is the men’s single sculls with 41 countries lining up. Two scullers, the reigning World Champion Ondrej Synek of the Czech Republic and reigning Olympic Champion Mahe Drysdale of New Zealand, have been the front-runners in the single. Now Cuba’s Angel Fournier Rodriguez, bronze medallist last year, is a clear threat along with the return to the international stage of Alan Campbell from Great Britain.

2015 World Rowing Junior Championships, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil COPYRIGHT: FISA Igor Meijer

The women’s single sculls sees 35 countries represented. Australia’s Kim Crow is the favourite in this boat class as she comes into the regatta following an unbeaten season. Crow’s main challenges will come from Olympic Champion Mirka Knapkova of the Czech Republic and Genevra Stone from the United States.

The lightweight men’s double sculls has attracted substantial interest especially for the home crowd. Jeremie Azou and Stany Delayre of France have dominated the 2015 season. But they will have to contend with current World Champions John Smith and James Thompson of South Africa as well as 2013 World Champions from Norway Kristoffer Brun and Are Strandli.

Winner of the 2015 World Rowing Cup series and the 2014 World Rowing Championship overall winner was New Zealand. They have entered 16 boats including entries in all of the Olympic boat classes.

Competition goes from 30 August to 6 September with racing spread across 27 boat classes comprising of 14 Olympic, eight International and five Para-rowing boat classes.

2015 WORLD ROWING JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS A SUCCESS FOR GERMANY AND A TEST FOR THE RIO OLYMPICS

One year out from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the 2015 World Rowing Junior Championships served as a test event for next year’s Olympic rowing regatta in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

On the waters of Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, the junior championships saw intense racing and testing for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on and off the water. President of the Organising Committee for the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games Carlos Arthur Nuzman, Mayor of Rio Eduardo Paes attended the event along with many staff members of the International Olympic Committee.

FISA President Jean-Christophe Rolland said the regatta gave a good impression of how next year’s Olympic rowing regatta would play out; “It was a very, very interesting regatta that helped us gather important information that will be necessary for the running of a successful Olympic rowing regatta.

“This (junior championships) is not the Olympic Games, but it was very good to test the key technical elements. Of course we can’t test everything, but we know the issues that we have to work with. It has been important to have face-to-face conversations with the relevant technical delegates that were here and so it was not just about written documents, but about the real impression of the event on the actual field of play.”

Overall the top country at the junior championships, by a large margin, was Germany. The Germans had boats in all of the 13 finals and earned an impressive 11 medals. Five of them were gold including a win in the junior women’s double sculls by Annemieke Schanze and Frieda Hammerling who led a field which included two-time junior World Champions Elena Logofatu and Nicoleta Pascanu of Romania. Logofatu and Pascanu were the silver medallists with Italy taking bronze.

Germany also managed to beat Romania in the men’s pair by a small 0.25 of a second. Olaf Roggensack and Rene Schmela of Germany stayed ahead of Romania’s Constantin-Crist Hirgau and Alexandru Chioseau in a battle that continued through to the finish line. The Romanians finished fourth overall on the medals table.

Second on the medals table, Italy earned gold medals in the junior men’s single sculls and junior men’s double sculls and five medals in total. The men’s single race had attracted the highest number of entries and these rowers worked their way through five rounds of racing to reach the final. Giacomo Gentili of Italy overcame a fast start by Germany’s Henrik Runge to take gold. A late race sprint by Adam Bakker of Australia earned his country its sole medal.

Start, Germany, Junior Women’s Eight, 2015 World Rowing Junior Championships, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
© Detlev Seyb/MyRowingPhoto.com

The Netherlands finished third on the medals table with both of their medals being gold. Marieke Keijser won the junior women’s single sculls after favourite to win, Sofia Asoumanaki of Greece was not able to hold her early race pace. Desislava Georgieva of Bulgaria was third and her bronze medal was Bulgaria’s sole medal. The Netherlands’ second gold was in the junior men’s eight. The Dutch crew came through from behind to cross ahead of the United States and Germany. Germany was the winner in the other blue riband event, the women’s eight followed by Italy and then the United States.

Normally a five-day regatta, the junior championships had to be condensed into four days because the weather forecast for the final day showing heavy winds prompted the schedule change.

To compete in the World Rowing Junior Championships, rowers must be 18 years of age or under. An athlete can compete as a junior until 31 December of the year in which s/he reaches the age of 18. After that date s/he shall be classified an Under 23 rower.
Some participation at the World Rowing Junior Championships is subsidised by the rowers who take part in the World Rowing Masters Regatta where each rower donates 1 Euro of every Masters Regatta entry fee to support youth rowing.

Next on the World Rowing calendar is the 2015 World Rowing Championships. This event will be held in Aiguebelette, France from 30 August – 6 September.

2015 FISA NATIONAL FEDERATIONS’ CONFERENCE

Representatives from more than 50 National Federations (NFs) along with FISA Council and Commission members, organising committees and FISA staff gathered last Sunday (8 March) to discuss the future of the sport following the IOC’s adoption of Agenda 2020. The Conference included presentations by FISA President Jean-Christophe Rolland and IOC Sport Director Kit McConnell.

The process actually began in 2013, with the release of the Olympic Programme report, after which FISA conducted a thorough analysis of its position within the Olympic Movement. The results inspired many new FISA programmes and helped to shape the strategic plan. The Council staged the initial NF Conference on Sunday, 31 August 2014 in Amsterdam where NF delegates considered several issues.

It continued in early December 2014 when the FISA Council reacted immediately to the release of the IOC’s 40 Agenda 2020 recommendations by meeting the next weekend to discuss the impact of these recommendations on the sport. “FISA’s Strategic Plan already aligned with most of the elements of Agenda 2020 and the FISA Council was able to use the IOC’s recommendations to fine-tune the plan,” says Rolland. “The inclusion of our national federations is vital to the success of the entire process.” The NF’s conference was the first opportunity for FISA to open the dialogue with these key players after the adoption of Agenda 2020 by the IOC.

The purpose of the conference was to inform NFs about the implementation of FISA’s strategic plan, in line with the IOC Agenda 2020 recommendations, and to create a forum for discussion amongst these key stakeholders on their roles in aligning the sport of rowing with Agenda 2020. It provided the ideal opportunity to evaluate and integrate the best solutions.

The morning session was dedicated to informing the national federations and commission members about rowing and the Olympic Movement. Rolland presented the background of Agenda 2020 and how the recommendations impact the sport of rowing. Executive Director Matt Smith then described the five pillars of FISA’s strategic plan re-assessed to address Agenda 2020.

FISA was honoured to introduce IOC Sport Director Kit McConnell to the conference delegates. McConnell’s presentation demonstrated how the IOC plans to work with international federations to find flexible solutions that reflect the Agenda 2020 recommendations. “This conference was a great opportunity to meet directly with FISA and their member national federations to discuss the implementation of the Olympic Agenda 2020 and wider Olympic considerations. The energy and positivity of the Rowing family is clear, and the leadership in the federation is equally apparent. We look forward to continuing this open dialogue,” says McConnell.

The afternoon break-out sessions allowed NFs to discuss and develop ideas on how each federation can address universality and gender equality; two of the key elements of Agenda 2020 and FISA’s strategic plan. This approach underlines the FISA objective to not only find solutions at the international level, but also to align each of the national federations with the broader goals and objectives of the IOC and FISA.

“We have clearly understood from the IOC that we must lead by example. It is important that we involve the entire rowing community in the discussion as we work to inspire change in our sport,” says Rolland. “This conference was one important step in the process.”

FISA COUNCIL ADDRESSES AGENDA 2020

The FISA Council met in London this weekend to promptly consider the positive contribution FISA could initiate to help the International Olympic Committee (IOC) make Agenda 2020 the best possible success. The members of the Council reviewed the 40 recommendations adopted by the IOC Session to see where and how they could be applied to FISA’s Strategic Plan as well as to prepare any appropriate changes to statues, rules, regulations and bye-laws. The Council members then broke up into five working groups to re-assess each point of the FISA Strategic Plan against Agenda 2020 and make the appropriate amendments.

FISA President Jean-Christophe Rolland, who attended the IOC Extraordinary Session in Monaco last Monday and Tuesday, led the Council through each of the recommendations. In particular, the Council addressed in great detail the subjects of cost reduction, sustainability and gender equality. It was very clear from Agenda 2020 that all stakeholders must do their share to help bring the total cost of the Olympic Games back to reasonable sums and that sport has a unique opportunity to lead this effort. As well, staging sustainable Games is critical and the Council gave this aspect a great deal of consideration. Gender equality is a societal issue and sport can play a special role in changing attitudes and behaviours. Rowing has already initiated a strategic plan to address this topic and increase the number of women participating.

All other recommendations were carefully reviewed, one by one, in order to assess the direct or indirect impact on the sport and one FISA. The FISA Strategic Plan was also reviewed line by line with Agenda 2020 and is being prepared for further consultation with the member national rowing federations.

A special meeting will take place in London on 8 March 2015 for the leaders of the national federations with the FISA Council to discuss the contributions that the sport of rowing can make to Agenda 2020, the possible changes and impacts coming from Agenda 2020, to discuss and agree on the FISA Strategic Plan for the sport of rowing and to develop in-depth strategies for greater universality, equality and sustainability for the sport of rowing.

In addition to this careful and detailed consideration of Agenda 2020, the Council also addressed

A review of the 2014 World Rowing Events, lessons learned
The Event Programmes for the 2015 World Rowing Events
The 2016 Olympic and Paralympic racing schedules
The new 2015 Anti-Doping Bye-Laws
The frequency of pre-competition cardiovascular screening
The Council made its appointment of the members to the technical commissions for 2015 to 2018
A review of the competition location for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games
FISA’s adherence to the IOC’s Integrity Betting Intelligence System
A full review of the status of FISA’s projects on universality, equality and sustainability

PARMIGIANI SPIRIT AWARD PRESENTED TO ZURICH UNIVERSITY ROWER FRANZ GRAVENHORST

German rower Franz Gravenhorst was presented with the second annual Parmigiani Spirit Award at a ceremony with representatives from FISA, the World Rowing Federation and Parmigiani Fleurier in Zurich today (Thursday).

As a doctorate student at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ), rower Franz Gravenhorst has excelled at both academics and rowing. In addition he has donated countless hours to improving and developing the sport and encouraging university rowing in Zurich and around the world.

Gravenhorst will soon defend his dual doctorate thesis on the use of electrical sensors both to improve rowing technique and applied to improve health care for individuals suffering from mental disorders. Besides his extensive academic projects, Gravenhorst has also dedicated his time to coaching, organising and promoting the university rowing programme which has allowed hundreds of Zurich university students to participate in the sport. Inspired by the inclusiveness of the rowing community that he has found worldwide, Gravenhorst is keen to open this community to as many people as possible.

Today, Franz Gravenhorst was presented with a Parmigiani Fleurier “Tondo 1950” watch by Parmigiani CEO Jean-Marc Jacot at the Widder Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland. Gravenhorst’s university rowing club will receive a custom-built top-of-the-range Filippi racing eight built in Italy.

Also present at the Award presentation were FISA President, Olympic gold medalist Jean-Christophe Rolland, and Olympian and World Champion Lenka Wech, who formed the Award judging panel along with Jacot and Mahe Drysdale, Olympic and World Champion single sculler. Members of Gravenhorst’s family and representatives of the Swiss Rowing Federation, the Swiss University Sports Federation and the Zurich University Sports Federation and ETHZ were also present for the ceremony.

“We decided to create this award to celebrate a rower who has achieved something very special in his or her life. This award is very important to thank these young people who have worked so hard. Franz is a person who gives so much to the sport and at the same time is achieving so much for society and the health of society. He is a worthy winner of the second Parmigiani Spirit Award,” said Jacot.

“We had many excellent and worthy candidates this year, it was quite difficult to choose. But the winner, Franz, demonstrated the core values of rowing and thus fits the criteria of the award perfectly,” said Rolland. “The sport of rowing demands tremendous dedication, it is essential that we recognize these fantastic individuals who dedicate their lives not only to academics and to rowing, but also to helping others.”

“Usually if I do something, I try to make it not about me. My first thought with this award is how it will be beneficial for the others, my whole team will benefit from it,” said Gravenhorst. “I am not used to receiving awards, but it is a great honour for me.”

The day concluded with a private celebration dinner for Gravenhorst, his family and Parmigiani and FISA representatives.

The Parmigiani Spirit Award was open to university rowers worldwide who demonstrated the core values of rowing in his/her social, academic and sporting life and, through those values, also enabled or inspired exceptional success in other people’s lives – for example in education, business, sports or charity. Rowing’s core values are: Teamwork, Fairness, Natural, Inclusive and Enduring.

FISA AND WWF SET NEW STANDARDS IN CONSERVATION THROUGH SPORT

The World Rowing Federation, FISA, and WWF have announced an extension of their strategic alliance for the promotion of Clean Water.

The alliance, created in 2011, will now go through to 2019. Stuart Orr, Manager, Global Freshwater Programme, WWF International, describes it an unprecedented move for WWF.

“This is the longest strategic alliance with a sports federation that we have formed to date,” said Orr. “It is a direct reflection of the work World Rowing has done so far in the promotion of Clean Water and the ideal match that WWF has found with World Rowing.”

FISA president Jean-Christophe Rolland said, “I am really pleased that we have renewed our Clean Water partnership with WWF. Over the past three years, we have shown that our sport is a powerful means of communication for the vital resource of Clean Water. It also reinforces the commitment we made three years ago that rowers take the environment seriously and will do everything they can to contribute to protecting our water ecosystems.”

This extension of the alliance means that WWF and World Rowing will now focus attention on developing an action-orientated project. The primary goal will be to create the capacity to train future generations of fresh water managers, while also contributing to an important conservation project. In parallel with this project, World Rowing will continue to educate rowers and fans to apply environmentally-sustainable practices in the use and management of water. World Rowing will also continue to introduce and apply new best practices in sustainable sports event management at regattas worldwide.

For more information, please see:
http://www.panda.org/freshwater
http://www.worldrowing.com/environment/

FINALISTS NAMED FOR THE 2014 PARMIGIANI SPIRIT AWARD

World Rowing and Parmigiani Fleurier are proud to announce the finalists for the 2014 Parmigiani Spirit Award (in alphabetical order):

Malibongwe Cebekulu (RSA)
Franz Gravenhorst (GER)
Matthew O’Donoghue (USA)
Lily van den Broecke (GBR)

The panel of judges, comprising New Zealand Olympic Champion single sculler Mahe Drysdale, German World Champion and Olympian Lenka Wech, Parmigiani Fleurier CEO Jean-Marc Jacot and FISA President and Olympic Champion Jean-Christophe Rolland will now decide the winner.

“As in the inaugural year, the achievements of the nominated rowers are exceptional,” says FISA President Jean-Christophe Rolland. “I know that the judges will have a difficult time to select the final award winner.”

The four finalists represent a range of experiences and talents, but each demonstrates the core values of the sport of rowing and through these values has enabled and inspired exceptional success in other people’s lives.

Malibongwe Cebekulu (RSA) studies law at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa. He first discovered rowing when he arrived at university in 2013, but has already been named Head of Development at the Rhodes University Rowing Club. Cebekulu is not only an active coxswain and rower, he also has worked to build, organise and coach a masters rowing programme and a new rowing programme in his home township, Makana township. Drawn to the sport despite his slender size, Cebekulu found his place on the team as a coxswain and through determination and commitment has worked tirelessly to encourage his teammates and to develop the sport of rowing.

Franz Gravenhorst (GER) is a PhD student studying Signal Processing in Sensor Networks for Healthcare and Sports Applications at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland. Gravenhorst first started rowing in 2001 and immediately influenced his team’s success. His focus, determination and teamwork have inspired teammates to exceptional performances at university and other championships are the world. Demonstrating unrelenting dedication to the sport and an ideal of inclusiveness, Gravenhorst has combined sport with engineering studies to better the quality of life for patients and facilitate success in sport.

Matthew O’Donoghue (USA) is a Mechanical Engineering student at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, USA. O’Donoghue first started rowing in 2007 and arrived at Yale in 2010. His dedication to the team and the university was immediately recognised. O’Donoghue devotes his limited spare time to volunteering and raising money for charities. He volunteers regularly with the Big Brother, Big Sister programme as a mentor and a positive male presence for a boy with a difficult family situation. Undeniably a team player, O’Donoghue received the Shedd-Crossman Award (most valuable rower) in 2014.

Lily van den Broecke studies Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Durham University in the United Kingdom. Van den Broecke first started coxing in 2006 and has been an active participant in her university programme as well as the British National Team. She won a gold medal at the 2012 Paralympics as the coxswain of the LTA coxed four. An active member of her campus community, van den Broecke rarely has a moment to spare between volunteering at a local café for the homeless and working on a college-wide scheme to reduce the amount of food waste by donating unused food to homeless shelters. Her commitment to life balance, giving back to others and her respect for nature is incontestable.

Complete biographies of each finalist will be posted on the World Rowing website in the lead-up to the announcement of the winner in mid-October.

The winner of the Award will receive a hand-crafted Parmigiani Fleurier watch and the rowing club of the winner will be presented with a custom-made new Filippi racing eight boat. For rowers in some countries (such as the United States where NCAA regulations apply), the awards will be adjusted to conform with national eligibility regulations.