The giant slayer, the princess
and ECO
The 10th European Congress on Obesity has won
a royal seal of approval. Prof Luc van Gaal, pictured here, 
joint congress chairman with Prof Andre
Scheen, secured the support of Belgium's royal bride, Princess Mathilde,
as the first royal patron of an obesity conference.
Princess Mathilde, who ran her own speech therapy
practice in Brussels, married Prince Philippe of Belgium last December.
Prof van Gaal said the princess was well-known for her interest in health
matters and had paid a visit to the Antwerp University Hospital .
"It is a great honour for us that she agreed to become our congress patron.
She wrote wishing us a lot of success," he added.
The congress promises to be a memorable event
with 604 abstracts submitted, and 90 oral presentations as well as five
plenary lectures, 14 review sessions on seven different tracks and 16 free
communication sessions. The date for the next ECO has been announced
by Prof Hermann Toplak, president of the Austrian association. It will
be held in the Hofburg in Vienna from May 30 to June 2 next year.
Footnote: The congress logo (on the Newsletter
front cover) is based on a famous legend in Antwerp. It is said the city
took its name from the story of a Roman giant slayer called Brabo who chopped
off the hand of a terrifying giant and threw it into the river. |
It
may seem a long way off but the forward planning for the 9th
ICO in São Paulo in 2002 is well underway.
The
programme tracks will be:
-
Adipose
Tissue Biology
-
Genetics
of Obesity
-
Prevention,
Behavioural Aspects and Childhood Obesity
-
Epidemiology
and Health Implications
-
Regulation
of Energy Balance
-
Management,
Treatment and Morbid Obesity
-
Continuing
Medical Education
Each track
will include sessions in the following formats: Meet the professor, tutorial,
lectures, debates, plenary lectures, symposia.
For
further information on the scientific programme, contact Professor Claude
Bouchard, chairman of the IASO International Advisory Committee for the
Scientific Programme by email at bouchac@pbrc.edu or Professor Alfredo
Halpern, President, Organizing Committee, 9th ICO Congress by email at
halpern@netpoint.com.br
Further
information will be updated on IASO's webpages.
Site
Selection for 10th ICO - 2006
In
the last issue of the Newsletter, the process by which IASO member associations
could bid to host the 10th ICO in 2006 was outlined. Since then,
seven bids from the following Associations and host cities have been received:
-
Turkish
Association for the Study of Obesity (Istanbul)
-
Czech
Society for the Study of Obesity (Prague)
-
Israel
Society for the Study and Prevention of Obesity (Jerusalem)
-
The Nordic
Associations for the Study of Obesity: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden
(Copenhagen – Malmo)
-
Spanish
Society for the Study of Obesity (Barcelona)
-
Australasian
Society for the Study of Obesity (Sydney)
-
North
American Association for the Study of Obesity (Seattle)
The
final applications were despatched to Site Selection Committee members
in early March, together with guidelines for assessment and a form to assist
with ranking. The Committee's views will be passed on to the general council
which will vote on the final selection.
Each
association bidding to host the ICO 2006 will be given the opportunity
to make a 10-minute presentation to the General Council in Antwerp. A secret
ballot of national representatives and delegates-at-large will then be
conducted and the announcement of the successful bidder will be made.
Professor
Philip James, as an uninvolved member of the IASO Executive Committee,
has been asked to officiate during the general council meeting.
In
the next issue of the Newsletter, we hope to feature an article on the
winning City and preview the victorious Association’s plans for the Congress.
- Kate Baillie