GaGunk Federation

The GaGunk Federation (Global Athletic Games for Unrecognized, Named or Known States) is a non-IAAF athletics governing body established in November 2011. The federation is made up of teams that represent nations, dependencies, unrecognized states, minorities, stateless peoples, regions and micronations not affiliated to the IAAF.

The GaGunk Federation arranges competitions and events between its member teams stating a belief that all nations have the right to take part in competitive athletics regardless of recognition or lack of by other states. The board predominately is responsible for two competitions, the GaGunk Championships and the Jefferson Cup.

The GaGunk Championships

The GaGunk Championships are held once every year and are hosted by a different member of the GaGunk Federation each time. The event will be first held in Summer 2012 with the host nation announced in March 2012. 

Events which are included in the competition are as follows; 100m, 4x100m relay, 400m, 800m, 5,000m and 10,000m in both mens and womens categories. A minimum of four athletes must be named in each event for it to actually take place within the competition.

The Jefferson Cup

The Jefferson Cup, which is held once every two years, is named after American founding father who is widely acknowledged as the principle author of the United States Declaration of Independence in 1766 and was the third President of the United States. The event will be first held in late 2014 with the host nation announced in March 2013.

The competition is more focused on team skills rather than individual achievements. Each athlete which competes in an event receives a number of points depending on the position they have achieved in that event, the points per nation across all events are calculated and the leading nation is named the winner of the Jefferson Cup.

Events which are included in the competition are as follows; 100m, 4x100m relay, 400m, 800m, 5,000m and 10,000m in both mens and womens categories. A minimum of four athletes must be named in each event for it to actually take place within the competition.

Nation Eligibility

All dependencies, unrecognized states, minorities, stateless peoples, regions and micronations are all eligible to join the GaGunk Federation and thus enter any regular or one off event which has been arranged or sanctioned by the GaGunk Federation. 

There are however limits and conditions that micronations must meet to be eligible to compete which are not imposed on any other nation. The micronation must claim actual land and thus not based only in the 'virtual world' and it must also be a serious micronation which is not deemed to be frivolous by the GaGunk Federation. The validity to any claim made over land by a micronation is not the concern of the GaGunk Federation. 

All applications to join the Federation are considered and a response to an applicant will be given within 30 days in writing. There are no fees to join the GaGunk Federation. Applications to join the federation should be made directly to the permeant secretary through the GaGunk Federations website, which launches in mid January 2012.

Any athlete is eligible to compete in any regular or one off event which has been arranged or sanctioned by the GaGunk Federation as long as they are officially representing, as a citizen or appointee of a nation which has been accepted into the GaGunk Federation.

Hosting Events

All dependencies, unrecognized states, minorities, stateless peoples, regions and micronations are all eligible to apply to host any event which arranged or sanctioned by the GaGunk Federation.

Applicants must be able to provide facilities (which the nation can rent or owns outright) for the event to be held, this can be basic or professional level facilities. The host nation applicant must also be able to show that they can provide time keepers or stewards to be able to record results as well as  recommend accommodation or pay for such accommodation for athletes to use. 

Applications must be made no less than 12 months before the event is suggested to begin, though once a nation has been successful in it's application it can move the suggested start date with permission from the GaGunk Federation.