A meeting of the European Naturist Commission (EuNat) took place via Zoom on 7 October. The BN motion to allow same sex couples to compete in the annual International Pétanque Tournament was overwhelmingly supported with some 95% in favour of the change.
BN International Director Anne Nisbet argued that as the INF-FNI already embrace Equality and Diversity in its statutes, logically this should also apply to the pétanque tournament. In the UK gender is irrelevant to participation in the BN doubles tournament. Furthermore, all competitors are amateurs. Same sex doubles teams be they two women or two men do not offer any competitive advantage from BN’s point of view; strength is irrelevant when playing pétanque.
The new rules will come into force with immediate effect, and will apply in next year’s International Pétanque Tournament, likely to be held in Germany.