Athletics in the UK: The Rise and Fall of the BAF

21 THE BATON IS PASSED TO THE BAAB After getting its way at the June 1984 EGM, the AAA was now finally faced with having to do something about this hot potato so it decided to pass it to the BAAB. The EGM resolution, carefully crafted by the AAA, had recommended that the BAAB be re-vamped into a single governing body so who better than the BAAB to see if it could be done? In January 1985, in response to the AAA, the BAAB, as expected, agreed to “ set up a steering committee to look at ways and means of establishing a new athletic body as the only National Governing Body for all amateur athletics in the United Kingdom... by the expansion of the constitution and the activities of the BAAB to embrace all matters affecting the administration of athletics in the UK ”. Dr Bill Evans, a former chairman of the BAAB and the current Honorary Secretary of the Welsh AAA, was appointed as chairman and he and his new committee got down to work. As a precursor to these moves the AAA had taken steps to have itself granted additional votes on the BAAB so that it was in a stronger position than ever to influence its decisions. It had also proposed Mike Turner as the Honorary Treasurer of the BAAB and he had been duly elected at the 1984 AGM. At the AGM of the BAAB held on 25 November 1984 voting rights had been changed so that, at General Meetings, the AAA wielded 90 votes out of a total of 220. The Women’s AAA would have 30 votes so that, with 120 votes between them, the English had an inbuilt majority. As a protection against abuse, it was decided that changes to the constitution would need 150 votes but this needed only one of the Celtic countries to side with England. The slightly farcical arrangement of the BAAB was that essentially the same people comprised the managing Council as were entitled to vote at General Meetings. The Council included one representative each of the male and female international athletes but, otherwise, the Council members’ votes were allocated in identical proportions to those at General Meetings. This meant that, from time to time, General Meetings of the BAAB had to be organised so that the members could ratify decisions that they themselves had already made, but as members of the Council.