General secretary of the World Ploughing Organisation (WPO), Anna Marie McHugh has confirmed that a meeting will take place tomorrow (Thursday, March 3) that will commence the process to formally cancel the World Ploughing Championships in Russia.
Speaking to Agriland, the general secretary said “there is no doubt” that the event, due to take place in Russia this coming August, will be cancelled.
She explained:
“It is a formal process so I can’t say it is cancelled and it won’t be cancelled tomorrow night but it [cancellation] is going to happen.”
She said that the WPO is “completely opposed to the situation that is happening” in Ukraine currently.
Prior to the Russian invasion last week, she said, the WPO had already been considering the status of the event in Russia.
Due to the urgency of the situation, a council meeting including 30 WPO affiliates will take place on March 3 at 6:30p.m.
“It is a very sensitive matter for everybody, it is a horrendous situation,” McHugh said.
She added that the formal cancellation process will involve each participating affiliate voting on the issue.
The outcome of that vote will be formalised depending on the duration of the meeting tomorrow evening.
Russian affiliates of the WPO, according to McHugh, already released a statement saying they understand that the event cannot go ahead due to the circumstances in Ukraine.
“We have Russian colleagues who have been planning this event for many years and it [cancellation of the World Ploughing Championships] is detrimental to them.
“They are working farmers and totally opposed to war of any sort and this is not what they wanted either,” she said.
Earlier today, Fianna Fáil senator and co-president of the ALDE party, Timmy Dooley called on McHugh to cancel the 67th World Ploughing Championships.
McHugh said she was “surprised” to see it [Dooley’s call] in the media and confirmed that she has not been personally addressed by the senator.
World Ploughing Championships
McHugh said a new location for this year’s event – which is scheduled up to 2037 – might potentially be considered at the meeting tomorrow.
“If Russia is cancelled and it is decided not to replace it with another venue for this year, the Republic of Ireland is the next venue of the contest in 2023.”
She added that there would be a very short lead-in time prior to the event where usually at least three to four years’ would be given ahead of the championships.