World Rugby refutes ‘unsubstantiated, erroneous claims’
Bill Beaumont during the 2019 Rugby World Cup Pool A match at Tokyo Stadium. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday September 20, 2019. See PA story RUGBYU Japan. Photo credit should read: Adam Davy/PA Wire. RESTRICTIONS: Editorial use only. Strictly no commercial use or association. Still image use only. Use implies acceptance of RWC 2019 T&Cs (in particular Section 5 of RWC 2019 T&Cs) at: https://bit.ly/2knOId6
World Rugby has dismissed claims of misconduct in the recent election which saw Sir Bill Beaumont win a second term as the organisation’s chairman.
On Wednesday, the Pacific Rugby Players Welfare (PRPW) submitted a dossier to World Rugby in which they claim the global game’s governing body is in breach of its own bye-laws and International Olympic Committee (IOC) regulations.
PRPW chief executive and former Samoa second-row Dan Leo also called for a full review of the World Rugby elections in which Beaumont beat Agustin Pichot in a tightly contested election in May.
The governing body issued a statement, however, in which they rejected those claims as “unsubstantiated and erroneous”.
“World Rugby strongly refutes unsubstantiated and erroneous claims made by Pacific Rugby Players Welfare and their CEO Dan Leo regarding voting influence within the international federation’s recent election process and other governance matters,” the statement read.
🗣️ "When compared with other major international sports federations, World Rugby’s governance is glaringly deficient."
🌏 Rugby's governing body has come under further pressure. 👇 https://t.co/Q3nelvBGbk
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) July 22, 2020
“World Rugby is completely satisfied that the 2020 chairperson election was undertaken in accordance with a robust process with Sir Bill Beaumont elected in a fair and appropriate manner.
“World Rugby is an advocate of the promotion of best-practice governance structures in sport as evidenced by the recently published ASOIF report on international federation governance which has independently reviewed World Rugby’s governance and ranked World Rugby as a top-performing federation.
“Reflecting this commitment, World Rugby continually reviews its decision-making structures and is currently undertaking a governance review which is being independently chaired by Sir Hugh Robertson and features player representatives appointed by International Rugby Players on the working group.
“The review scope includes examining criteria for a fit and proper person test for elected members.
“Furthermore, World Rugby only recognises International Rugby Players as the global representative body for players. Within its structures, players from the Pacific Islands are represented via Pacific Rugby Players.”