After exactly one year in existence the International Poker Federation received a huge fillip today when poker was officially accepted as a “mind sport” by the International Mind Sports Association.
Poker will now appear at the World Mind Sports Games in London in 2012 alongside chess and bridge.
Writer and poker player Anthony Holden, who is president of IFP, said the development was, ““a major milestone in our campaign to have poker accepted throughout the world as a game of strategic skill.
“Over time, this should help to free poker from much governmental interference and other such unnecessary restrictions all over the globe.”
IFP’s Advisory Board member Doyle Brunson (pictured), said, “The IFP deserves our thanks and congratulations. I believe that history will show this was a key moment for poker. All over the world the game has been faced with governmental controls and other obstacles. Yet it is obvious it calls for qualities and skills that go far beyond a capacity just to take a chance.”
It’s moments like these that continue to shape the future of the game, both live and online, where players flock to poker sites for real money to put their skills to the test.
The IFP will tomorrow lodge a formal application for membership of SportAccord, a global organisation with around 150 member Sports Federations.
