Meetings & Minutes

Minutes of meeting 25 June 2025

Minutes of the Nordic Chess Federation Online Board Meeting 

Date: June 25, 2025 
Location: Online 
Chair/Participants:  

Panu Olavi Laine (Finland), Lasse Ø. Løvik (Norway), Håkan Jalling (Sweden), Jóhanna Björg Jóhannsdóttir and Gunnar Björnsson (Iceland), Jon Ingi Wiberg (Faroe Islands), Poul Jacobsen (Denmark), Morten Lillestøl Madsen (Norway), 
 

1. Constitution of the Board and Appointment of Roles 

  • The Board was formally constituted. 
  • Morten Madsen was formally appointed as Interim Secretary General until the next General Assembly. 
  • The term of Secretary General traditionally lasts from GA to GA and should be stated in the future statutes.  
  • Geir Nesheim was suggested and supported as Treasurer, pending confirmation. 
  • Geir served until 2021 and has offered to resume the role for an annual compensation of €500. 
  • The Federation has not received membership payments for several years; the fee remains €500/year per federation (Faroe Islands possibly less). 
  • There is reportedly a Danish bank account with DKK 80,000, but access and current status are unclear. 
  • Morten Madsen will contact Geir to clarify the financial status and report back to the Board. 

2. Membership 

  • The Board unanimously agreed to welcome Greenland as a member of the Nordic Chess Federation. 
  • Greenland has recently become a FIDE affiliate. Denmark—and thus Greenland—belongs to Zone 1.3, along with the other Nordic countries (Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden).  
  • It was emphasized that the Nordic Federation should support Greenland in developing their organization.  
  • The Nordic Chess Federation will give Greenland the necessary time to initiate contact and engage when they are readyFigur 

3. Statutes 

  • The current statutes date back to 2007. 
  • The Board agreed to approve a working English-language version for internal use. 
  • A formal revision and approval process is scheduled for the next General Assembly in autumn 2025. 

4. Communications and Digital Presence 

  • The existing website has been taken offline due to expired payment. 
  • A new simple static website (based on WordPress or similar) will be developed to include statutes, tournament calendar, contacts, invitation letters, the history of the NCF.  
  • The Secretary General’s son may assist with this for free. 
  • Domain name NCF.com to be considered if available. Otherwise SG is free to find and establish a domain.  

5. Membership Fees 

  • No payments have been received in recent years. See agenda point 1. 
  • The issue of back-payments versus starting fresh will be discussed at the next General Assembly. 

6. Meeting Plan 

  • It was agreed to hold three online meetings per year and one physical meeting if feasible (preferably in connection with a tournament). 
  • Next General Assembly proposed to be held in Batumi during the ECU GA in autumn (October). 
  • A hybrid meeting format will be explored. 
  • A Nordic delegate may be sent to the ECU Congress. 

7. Ethics and Regulation 

  • The Board discussed a serious misconduct case from Denmark involving cheating and ethical violations. 
  • The individual in question received a 2-year suspension and has appealed. 
  • The case raises broader questions of how to handle serious offenses. 
  • It was proposed to create a Nordic registry or framework for recording and coordinating disciplinary actions. 
  • An Arbiter seminar will be held the first weekend of September in Copenhagen. 
  • A FA seminar is planned for January in Oslo, with free participation for women. 
  • Anti-doping regulation was raised as a topic for future meetings. 
  • Finland has already conducted testing at national championships. 

8. Other Business 

  • Open floor for additional issues. 
  • Discussions included the future handling of misconduct cases, coordination of arbiter training, and the need for unified Nordic standards for ethics and discipline in chess. 

9. Next Steps 

  • Secretary General will: 
  • Contact Geir Nesheim regarding the treasurer role and financial report. 
  • Establish a new website. 
  • Create a year schedule for the board meetings. 

The next board meeting will be scheduled in advance of the General Assembly I Batumi.