Stockholm, Sweden, October 6, 2009 – In a joint statement issued by three of the major organizations involved in the sled dog unification process, all agreed that unification is “a great project with good people.” This best typified the mood of the meeting between the International Federation of Sled Dog Sports (IFSS), the European Sled Dog Racing Association (ESDRA) and the International Sled Dog Racing Association (ISDRA) in Stockholm on October 6th.  Over an evening of meetings and dinner, Bengt Pontén of the IFSS, Lars Svanfeldt of ESDRA and Dave Steele of ISDRA discussed a wide range of issues and concerns. While no specific decisions were reached on future organizational structures to further the unification of extant dog sports organizations, a greater understanding of each and the challenges they face was achieved.

A significant portion of the meeting was devoted to the description of the structure and activities of each and the context within which each operates. IFSS can best be depicted as a world governing body with some service arms. Comparing and contrasting the focus of ISDRA, which is best described as a service organization with some governmental features, with ESDRA, best described as a governing body with some service features, yielded a better understanding of the current differences between the organizations. The talks ended on a cordial note with the clear intention of continuing the dialogue and working towards unification and increased cooperation between the organizations.