Equestrian, curling, table tennis and rugby have become the latest Federations to suspend their membership with SportAccord, it has been announced today.

SportAccord President Marius Vizer has compiled a detailed reform agenda ahead of a proposed meeting with his International Olympic Committee (IOC) counterpart Thomas Bach next month, with the introduction of prize money for Olympic athletes among the most startling items for discussion.

SportAccord President Marius Vizer has today called for a meeting to be held with both the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF), claiming there is a need for "open and honest discussions for the benefit of sport".

Weightlifting has become the tenth sport to suspend its membership of SportAccord, insidethegames has been told today.

Here is a short quiz for keen students of the Olympic Movement.

Who said this? “All over the world people are tired of the insincerity, the excessive cost and the ceremony which accompany the Games. Their huge success in this century is no guarantee for the future.”

Or how about this? “Cooperation with the International [Sports] Federations (IFs) is more than ever necessary. The federations are, as always, ready to cooperate, but expect that this cooperation will be in a spirit of genuine partnership…In society, the role of sport will be ever more important, either with Olympism or without, and therefore the role of the IFs will not cease gaining importance.”

Triathlon has become the ninth sport to suspend its membership of SportAccord, insidethegames has been told.

SportAccord has been hit by yet another blow after the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (FIBT) became the first winter Federation, and eighth overall, to suspend its membership in response to the criticism of President Marius Vizer about the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and its head, Thomas Bach.

"Unanimous" support for the World Combat Games was pledged by 15 of the 16 participating sports last month, SportAccord have declared today following the subsequent withdrawal of up to three of these members.

Marius Vizer has defended his fierce criticism of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and its President Thomas Bach launched at last month's SportAccord Convention in Sochi, claiming Federations have been put under pressure to oppose him.

Taekwondo and wrestling have become the latest sports to suspend their membership from SportAccord, while taekwondo has also withdrawn from the World Combat Games.

Chelyabinsk, the latest stop on the Olympic Movement's recent Russian tour, is a city in the Southern Urals most interesting for two rather unusual historical happenings. The first, over half a century ago in 1957, was a nuclear spillage at nearby Ozyorsk rated as history’s worst until Chernobyl in 1986 and Fukushima in 2011. This was followed in February 2013 by the falling of a meteor close to the city, the light of which was reportedly brighter than the sun.

A closer relationship between the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and IOC-recognised federations has been hailed following a successful workshop between the two, in which the IOC presented a "range of current projects and opportunities for greater engagement within the context of Olympic Agenda 2020".

It is a lovely day in Britain today. Blue sky, blossom and an air of gentle optimism that only spring can bring.

The Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) has announced it is reconsidering its sponsorship of the SportAccord Convention following Marius Vizer’s attack on International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach.

International Chess Federation (FIDE) President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov has been elected to the ruling council of SportAccord here, as has Stephen Fox, freshly elected President of the Alliance of Independent Members (AIMS).