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RE: World Fitness Federation (WFF-International) - Secretary_International - 07-26-2026
INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION OF LONG-STANDING ACHIEVEMENTS
CONFERMENT OF THE U.N.E.S.C.O. AMBASSADOR OF PEACE TITLE
For many decades, the World W.F.F.–W.B.B.F. (World Fitness Federation – World Body Building Federation) has carried out extensive international activities that have attracted the attention and recognition of various international organizations. Through its initiatives promoting sport, healthy lifestyles, culture, and international cooperation, the Federation has made a significant contribution to strengthening international relations and promoting the name of Lithuania worldwide.
In September 2023, upon the nomination of Professor DSc. Yaroslav Kmit, Rector of the oldest Stavropigion University in Lviv, Ukraine, the President of the World W.F.F.–W.B.B.F. Federation, Dr. Edmundas Daubaras, was awarded the title of "U.N.E.S.C.O. Ambassador of Peace" (2023).
On the same occasion, Dr. Edmundas Daubaras was presented with a commemorative medal featuring a star, symbolizing this international recognition and distinction.
The title was awarded in recognition of Dr. Daubaras' long-standing contribution to the development of international cooperation, the unification of sports organizations from different countries, and the promotion of peace, mutual respect, and humanistic values through sport.
Throughout its decades of activity, the World W.F.F.–W.B.B.F. Federation has become one of the most active international sports organizations, bringing together representatives from dozens of countries. The Federation's championships, congresses, and international projects have contributed to strengthening sports diplomacy, expanding cultural cooperation, and fostering dialogue among nations.
CONCLUSION
The conferment of the "U.N.E.S.C.O. Ambassador of Peace" title upon Dr. Edmundas Daubaras represents a significant international recognition of his lifelong dedication and achievements. At the same time, it acknowledges the consistent efforts of the World W.F.F.–W.B.B.F. Federation in promoting international cooperation, the values of sport, and dialogue among nations. This distinction marks another important milestone in the Federation's history and reflects its growing authority and reputation within the international sports community.
More information is on international site www.wff.lt
RE: World Fitness Federation (WFF-International) - Secretary_International - 07-27-2026
60 years of “Amber Prix”.
THE BOOK. Introduction
The history of bodybuilding has traditionally been written through the achievements of outstanding athletes, the evolution of physique competitions, and, above all, the rise of the International Federation of BodyBuilders (IFBB) after the 1970s. As a result, the earlier institutional foundations of bodybuilding have received comparatively limited scholarly attention. In particular, the establishment of international governing structures after the Second World War, the relationship between bodybuilding and the international weightlifting movement, and the development of bodybuilding within the socialist countries remain insufficiently examined.
This monograph argues that bodybuilding became an internationally organized sport considerably earlier than is generally assumed. Its institutional foundations were established between 1947 and 1969 through the creation of international governing bodies, the introduction of officially sanctioned championships, the gradual standardization of competition rules, and the emergence of national administrative structures. These developments transformed bodybuilding from a loosely organized physical culture activity into a sport administered through international and national institutions.
Particular attention is devoted to the period during which bodybuilding was administered within the Fédération Internationale Haltérophile et Culturiste (FIHC), whose role has largely been overshadowed in later historical accounts by the expansion of the IFBB. Although the IFBB subsequently became the dominant international bodybuilding organization, the administrative structures established under the FIHC provided the first internationally recognized framework for governing bodybuilding competitions. Reconstructing this earlier phase is therefore essential for understanding the institutional origins of the sport.
A second objective of this study is to examine the introduction of bodybuilding into the socialist countries. Existing historical narratives have generally portrayed bodybuilding as a predominantly Western phenomenon until the late twentieth century. Contemporary documentary evidence, however, demonstrates that organized bodybuilding had already begun to develop within the Soviet Union during the 1960s through officially organized competitions, emerging administrative structures, and increasing international contacts.
Within this broader process, Lithuania occupied a distinctive position. Lithuanian organizers were among the principal initiators of organized bodybuilding within the Soviet Union, organized some of the earliest international bodybuilding competitions held in the socialist world, and established the “Amber Prix International” tournament, which became one of the most influential amateur bodybuilding competitions in Eastern Europe and later in the World. These developments demonstrate that Lithuania's contribution extended beyond regional sporting activity and formed part of the broader institutional development of international bodybuilding.
Accordingly, this monograph does not seek to rewrite the general history of bodybuilding. Instead, it reconstructs one specific dimension of that history: the institutional evolution of international bodybuilding between 1947 and 1969. By analysing the creation of governing organizations, official competitions, administrative structures, and international cooperation, the study demonstrates how bodybuilding acquired institutional legitimacy within both Western and socialist sporting systems.
The study is based upon official competition records, congress proceedings, organizational documents, contemporary sporting publications, and archival materials relating to the administration of bodybuilding and weightlifting. These sources make it possible to reconstruct a formative period in the history of bodybuilding that has received comparatively limited attention in the existing historiography.
Rather than focusing primarily on individual champions or the evolution of training methods, the chapters that follow examine the organizations, institutions, and administrative decisions that shaped the early development of international bodybuilding. Beginning with the incorporation of bodybuilding into the international sports system in 1947, the study traces the establishment of official international championships, the expansion of bodybuilding into the socialist countries, the creation of Soviet organizational structures, and the emergence of Lithuania as one of the principal centres of bodybuilding development in Eastern Europe and later in the World.
More information is on international site www.wff.lt