The association's rules

The rules of the association Aisti Sport ry

These revised rules of the association have been approved by the Finnish Patent and Registration Office, and these current rules took effect precisely on 13 October 2025 at 11:27:11.

Section 1 — Name, domicile and area of operation

The name of the association is Aisti Sport ry. The association's domicile is Vantaa. In these rules the association is referred to as the club. The club's area of operation is principally Uusimaa and, secondarily, the rest of Finland.

Section 2 — Purpose of the club

The purpose of the club is to develop sport and physical activity for visually impaired people while advancing inclusion in society, and to promote its members' health and wellbeing through an inclusive environment.

Section 3 — Realising the purpose

In order to realise its purpose, the association:

Organises sports and physical activity training, tournaments, events and training sessions
Acquires the equipment needed to take part in its sports, and marketing material relating to its activities
Organises exhibitions, parties and other similar activities
Works in productive cooperation with stakeholders in order to produce services in line with the club's purpose
Influences the planning of physical activity, health education and sports facilities in Uusimaa

In order to support its activities, the association may:

Carry out publishing activities
Accept grants, donations and bequests
Own the movable and immovable property necessary for its activities
Own shares, funds and bonds
Raise funds by organising collections of goods or money, and raffles
Carry on business activity that is connected with realising its purpose or that is of minor economic value

Section 4 — The club's membership of other associations

The association's annual general meeting decides on the club's memberships of other associations. The club and the club's members also undertake to comply with the rules of the organisations of which the club is a member.

Section 5 — Members of the club

The board may approve as a member of the club a person who undertakes to comply with:

The club's rules, or other regulations and decisions issued under them
The rules of the organisations of which the club is a member, or other regulations and decisions issued under them
The ethical principles of sport
The anti-doping rules of the national and international Paralympic committees and of the sport's federation, as in force at any given time
The rules prohibiting the manipulation of competition results and events

On the basis of a written application, the board may approve:

As a full member, a person who has reached the age of 15
As a junior member, a person under the age of 15
As a supporting member, a person or a legal entity

On a proposal from the board, a meeting of the club may approve:

As an honorary member, a person who has advanced the club's activities very significantly
As honorary chair, a person who has served as the club's chair with distinction and has significantly advanced the club's activities

The club and all of the club's members submit to the jurisdiction of the Finnish Sports Legal Protection Board and undertake to comply with the board's decisions.

Section 6 — Resigning from the club

A member has the right to resign from the club by notifying the board or the chair of the board in writing, or by announcing their resignation at a meeting of the club for entry in the minutes. Resignation is deemed to have taken place as soon as notice is given, but the resigning member is obliged to pay their fees and to meet the other obligations required by these rules until the end of the current operating season.

Section 7 — Expulsion of a member for unpaid membership fees

A member is deemed to have resigned if they have left a membership fee that fell due six months ago unpaid.

Section 8 — Expulsion of a member and other disciplinary measures

The board decides on expulsion, on disciplinary measures and on the sanctions imposed in connection with them. The person concerned must always be heard before a decision is made. A hearing is arranged for the person concerned before a decision is made, at a time determined by the board, and where the person concerned is prevented from attending, it may be postponed once only.

A member of the club may be sanctioned, as may a person who takes part in the club's activities and has committed in writing to these rules. The sanction imposed may be a warning, a fine, a fixed-term restriction of membership rights, a playing ban, a ban on taking part in the club's activities, or expulsion from the club.

On a proposal from the board, a meeting of the club may decide to transfer disciplinary authority to a separate disciplinary body and to approve rules of procedure for that body.

A decision on expulsion or discipline takes effect immediately and is deemed to have come to the knowledge of the person concerned five days after the decision has been sent to them by email or letter. The decision may also be served demonstrably by another means, in which case it has come to their knowledge at the moment of service. A person who has been expelled or who is the subject of a disciplinary decision has no right to reclaim fees they have paid to the club.

The following are sanctionable:

Acting in a way whose defining features meet the grounds for expulsion set out in the Associations Act
Non-payment of invoices relating to the club's activities
Acting contrary to these rules or to the regulations and decisions issued under them
Acting contrary to the rules of the organisations of which the club is a member, or to the regulations and decisions issued under them
Committing a doping offence
Acting against the club's purpose
Damaging the club's reputation, whether in the club's activities or outside them
Breaching the ethical principles of physical activity and sport
Committing an offence, whether in the club's activities or outside them, if the offence has been punished with a suspended or unsuspended prison sentence

Where the rules and regulations of the sport's federation or another umbrella organisation are suspected of having been breached, those organisations have primary disciplinary authority. The club must take these organisations' disciplinary decisions into account in its own disciplinary procedure.

Section 9 — Joining and membership fees

The club's annual general meeting decides each year on the amount of the joining fees and annual membership fees charged to full members and supporting members. No joining or membership fees are charged to junior members, honorary members or the honorary chair. Joining and membership fees may differ between membership categories. Members approved in December or later are charged only half the joining and membership fee in their first year.

Section 10 — The club's ordinary and extraordinary meetings

The club holds one ordinary annual general meeting each year, held between June and September. The board determines the place and the exact time of the meeting. The meeting can be attended in person or remotely.

Notice of the annual general meeting and of an extraordinary meeting of the club must be published at least 14 days before the meeting, by sending the notice of meeting to the membership using the association's official communication channels. Matters that the club's members wish the annual general meeting to consider must be submitted to the board as a written proposal no later than 7 days before the meeting.

Section 11 — Matters considered at the annual general meeting

The following matters are considered at the association's annual general meeting:

The meeting is opened
A chair, a secretary, two scrutineers of the minutes and two tellers are elected for the meeting
The members present who are entitled to vote are established
The legality of the meeting and its quorum are established
The annual report, financial statements, action plan and budget drawn up by the board are presented, together with the statement given by the operations auditor or the auditor
A decision is taken on confirming the annual report, the financial statements, the action plan, the budget and the statement given by the operations auditor or the auditor, and on granting discharge from liability to the board and to others accountable
Where necessary, a decision is taken on which sports and physical activities are on the club's programme in the coming season
Where necessary, a decision is taken on the club's membership of other organisations and bodies
The levels of the membership and supporting membership fees are confirmed, and a decision is taken on any joining fees
Every second year, the association's chair is elected for a two-year term
Board members are elected to replace those whose term has expired, for a two-year term
One operations auditor and a deputy operations auditor, or one auditor and a deputy auditor, are elected
Where necessary, a decision is taken on the club's representatives to the organisations and bodies of which the club is a member
The other matters mentioned in the notice of the meeting are considered
The meeting is closed

Section 12 — Extraordinary meeting of the club

An extraordinary meeting of the club is held when the board considers it necessary, when a meeting of the club so decides, or when at least one tenth of the club's members entitled to vote have made a written proposal to the board on account of some specified matter. The notice of an extraordinary meeting must state the matter for which the meeting has been convened. An extraordinary meeting must be held no later than two months after the members have made a proposal for it in the manner described above.

Section 13 — Minutes

Minutes must be kept at meetings of the club, its board and its working groups. The minutes of meetings of the club and of the board must be signed by the chair and secretary of the meeting within a reasonable time. The minutes of the board and of working groups are reviewed immediately or at the following meeting.

Section 14 — Voting

On matters of substance, the decision of a meeting is the view supported by more than half of the votes cast. In elections, those receiving a majority of the votes are elected. Where only one person is to be elected, however, more than half of the votes cast (an absolute majority) is required to be elected. In the event of a tie on a matter of substance, the position announced by the chair decides, and in elections the matter is decided by lot. At all meetings a vote is held, if required, by closed ballot or using another closed and accessible method of voting.

Every full member who has paid their membership fee by the time of the annual general meeting, together with honorary members and the honorary chair, has one vote. Supporting members have no right to vote. Voting by proxy is not permitted.

Section 15 — The club's administration

The club's activities and finances are directed by the board, which serves from one annual general meeting to the next. The board comprises a chair elected for two operating seasons at a time and 4–6 members elected for two operating seasons. Each year a maximum of 3 members are elected to replace those whose term is ending. In this way half of the board's term ends each year. A board member may not represent another club in competing activity. A board member may not sit on the board of another club engaged in competing activity. The board elects a vice-chair and a secretary from among its number.

The board convenes at the invitation of the chair or, when the chair is prevented from attending, the vice-chair, when they consider it necessary or when half of the board's members demand it in writing. The board has a quorum when the chair or, when the chair is prevented from attending, the vice-chair, plus at least half of its members, are present.

The board's duties are in particular:

Carry out the decisions of the club's meeting
Lead and develop the club's activities
Choose the necessary working groups, their chairs and the sport leads
Convene and prepare the club's meeting
Be responsible for the club's finances
Maintain the list of members
Prepare the club's financial statements, annual report, action plan and budget for approval by the annual general meeting
Take care of the club's communications
Approve and expel members, and decide on disciplinary measures concerning members
Choose and dismiss the club's paid officials, and agree their benefits
Decide on the granting of the club's awards and on nominations for other honourable mentions and awards
Take any other measures that the club's interest requires
Hand over the accounts to the operations auditors or the auditors for review at least one month before the annual general meeting

Section 16 — Financial and operating season

The club's financial and operating season runs from June to May of the following year, 1 June – 31 May.

Section 17 — Signatories

The club's name is signed by the chair or the vice-chair, either one together with another board member or official. Signatories must be of full age.

Section 18 — Working groups and teams

The club's working groups or teams may decide on their internal activities, provided that the club's board confirms the legal acts they undertake. The board decides on the financial administration of the club's working groups or teams. Funds collected in the association's name by a working group, a team or those taking part in the club's activities are, as a starting point, the association's funds. The board decides on the use of these funds.

Section 19 — Amending the rules and dissolving the association

A decision to amend the rules or to dissolve the club is made by the club's annual general meeting by a majority of at least three quarters of the votes cast. The notice of meeting must mention the amendment of the rules or the dissolution of the club. Dissolution of the club must be notified to the register of associations.

Section 20 — Transfer of the club's assets

If it has been decided to dissolve the club, its assets must be transferred to one or more parties advancing the purpose within the club's area of operation, in accordance with the decision of the meeting that decided on the dissolution. The persons elected by the meeting act as liquidators.