CLASS

International Windsurfer Class Association Europe

A not-for-profit organisation which administers and promotes activities for the Windsurfer in Europe and in Italy.

Originally founded on 1 April 1977 as International Windsurfer Class Association – Distretto Italia, after the stop of all activities in the 90s it was re-founded on 19 April 2011 thanks to the initiative of a group of former sailors. In September 2016 the association adopted the name International Windsurfer Class Association Europe, to better focus efforts on restarting Windsurfer activities across all of Europe.

The Italian Windsurfer Class is constituted as an organizational unit operating within IWCA Europe, with full decision-making and financial autonomy and governed by its own internal regulations and independent electoral process.

A volunteer committee of sailors oversees the administration of the Class, with elections open to all active members.

IWCA Europe Elections 2025–2028

From 21 April to 4 May 2025, the European elections were held for the renewal of the Board of Directors of IWCA Europe ASD. A total of 307 members out of 771 eligible voters took part in the ballot. The results were subsequently ratified, as detailed in the documentation available here

The following candidates were elected:

• President: Alfredo Barbera (ITA)
• Secretary / Vice President: Edoardo Thermes (ITA)
• Board Members: Cristina Roca (ESP), Paul Meester (NED), Francisco Javier Avilés Olmos (ESP), Pierre-Franck Mironneau (FRA), Marco Liello (ITA), Riccardo Di Bartolomeo (ITA), Eric Belot (FRA)

IWCA Italia Executive Committee Elections 2025–2028

Through a separate election reserved exclusively for Italian members of IWCA Europe ASD, the elections for the renewal of the IWCA Italia Executive Committee were held from 23 May to 5 June 2025.

The IWCA Italia Executive Committee operates with full managerial and financial autonomy for the organisation and management of national Windsurfer Class activities in Italy.

A total of 119 members out of 229 eligible voters (52%) participated in the vote, with the following results:

• President: Alessandro Torzoni
• Vice President / Secretary: Giorgio Spano
• Board Members: Alberto Congiu, Bruna Ferracane, Maurizio Bufalini, Vittorio Blardi, Michele Tocchetti

Membership and National Associations

IWCA Europe administers the European membership system, the sail number registry for Europe and coordinates and administers the European Events Calendar.

European sailors who want to compete in official events or simply support the Class can apply for membership on windsurferclass.com and obtain a personal and unique sail number.

IWCA is actively working to promote the establishment of National IWCA associations. If you want to start a National Class Association in your European country, get in touch with us at windsurferclass@gmail.com.

Constituted National Class Associations in Europe:

IWCA Denmark
IWCA Finland
IWCA France
IWCA Italy
IWCA Latvia
IWCA Nederland
IWCA Spain

Funding and Relationship with Windsurfer Europe Srls

Membership fees represent the primary source of funding for IWCA Europe.

The management and redistribution of membership fees are governed by the following principles:

• When a membership is issued in a country where an officially recognized Windsurfer National Association is active, 80% of the membership fee is transferred to the national association that generated the registration. The remaining 20% is retained by IWCA Europe to cover administrative and operational costs, payment processing fees, and as the European IWCA membership contribution.
• When a membership is issued in a country where no recognized Windsurfer National Association exists, IWCA Europe retains 100% of the membership fee as the European membership contribution.

Unless otherwise regulated by specific agreements, the redistribution mechanism described above does not apply in countries where the Windsurfer Class is represented by bodies other than a formally constituted national Windsurfer association; in such cases, no transfer of funds is made to those entities.

IWCA Europe membership revenues and registration data are shared in real time with the originating countries whenever a recognized Windsurfer National Class is active in that country.

Each sailor who completes a membership registration becomes a member of both IWCA Europe and the corresponding National Windsurfer Class Association, where such an association exists, ensuring full alignment between European and national membership structures.

The association is a legally and financially independent entity, separate from the commercial company Windsurfer Europe Srls. Windsurfer Europe Srls, as the commercial partner of the Class, has played a pivotal role in the development of the current LT equipment and in supporting the expansion of the Class ecosystem by facilitating the involvement of additional commercial brands.

Our milestones

On 19 April 2011 the INTERNATIONAL WINDSURFER CLASS – DISTRETTO ITALIA was reconstituted.

CONSTITUTION

Italian (original version)
English (unofficial translated version)

In the Anzio General Meeting of 10 September 2016 it was decided to rename the association to INTERNATIONAL WINDSURFER CLASS – EUROPE, to coordinate and stimulate the growth of activities throughout Europe. Details are available in this LINK.

This decision was then ratified in the Ostia General Meeting of 10 March 2018, in the same meeting in which the new LT board was approved. Details are available in this LINK.

IWCA Europe ASD is recognised by FIV, is based in Via Salaria 350, 00199 Rome, and has tax code C.F. 97609700584. The name change receipt is available at this LINK.