For millions of anglers throughout the world, this challenge is far more rewarding than any desire to bring fish home to eat. These anglers may well develop the skills to catch a lot of fish, yet rarely take home more than one or two. For them, the sport is the motivation, not harvesting food.
To be consistently successful, anglers must first learn their quarry and how it works, which frequently develops a strong appreciation and bond. Sporting anglers are among the most passionate wardens of the waters they fish, and of the creatures that live within it. They care, and they invest a lot of effort to protect it.
TRANSFORMED INTO A SPORT
Whether you enjoy golf, tennis, or football, you’ll agree that simply hitting these balls around a paddock would seem pointless — and soon become boring. However, with a set of rules and a defined goal, these activities are transformed into an engaging, testing, and enjoyable sport.
Even if you never compete, you will still play your game knowing and abiding by the parameters that define it as a sport. It’s this structure that makes all the difference.
Sport fishing also has a structure: a set of rules that transforms mere fishing into a sport. Within our sport, some chose to compete against other anglers, testing their skills in ways that can be quantified. This can be done in tournaments, or by achieving records — both of which give official recognition of your accomplishment as compared to your peers. But even if you never fish a tournament or chase records, following the sport’s guidelines will make your fishing more enjoyable.
THE SPORT’S ADJUDICATOR AND PROTECTOR
There are numerous fishing associations and sporting bodies around the world, but the Supreme Leader of them all is the International Game Fish Association — most commonly referred to as the IGFA.
Achieving an IGFA world record is one of the highest pinnacles a sporting angler can hope to accomplish, but as you’ll read below, the IGFA does far more than set the angling rules and manage the ultimate records.
The IGFA is a non-profit organisation committed to the conservation of game fish, and the promotion of responsible, ethical angling practices. They achieve this through science, education, rulemaking, record keeping, and recognition of outstanding accomplishments in the field of angling.
Their vision statement is to “Establish the International Game Fish Association as the most widely recognised authority on game fish and angling-related matters in the world.”
Fishing is a hugely diverse sport, ranging from tiny freshwater species in creeks to the largest and strongest predatory fish in the oceans. The techniques and the tackle used to catch these fish are even more diverse, so the IGFA’s Angling Rules need to be comprehensive to maintain control and ensure that all anglers can compete or compare results on an even playing field.
To see the current IGFA Angling Rules, visit: igfa.org/international-angling-rules.
WORLD RECORDS
The IGFA maintains world records for all popular species of freshwater and saltwater game fish weighing more than 0.453kg (1 pound). There are separate record sections for fish caught using conventional fishing tackle, fish caught on fly fishing tackle, and a third for fish that are caught, measured, photographed, and then released. Yes, there are even ways to claim a world record of this type for a fish that you released alive!
One category of records is known as ‘All Tackle,’ which lists the largest example of the species ever caught according to the rules. The current All Tackle record chart lists more than 2100 different species.
Then within each species, the IGFA also keeps records for the largest example ever caught using a particular strength of tackle — which is the real measure of angling skill, rather than simply the largest ever caught.
The sport’s defined categories of line strength are: 1kg, 2kg, 3kg, 4kg, 6kg, 8kg, 10kg, 15kg, 24kg, 37kg, and 60kg. This is why, when you visit a tackle store, you will notice the heavier and more advanced versions of game fishing rods, lines, and reels are often labelled as suitable for a particular line class – such as 15kg (30lb) or 24kg (50lb), for example.
Claiming an IGFA world record is available to everyone — you don’t need to be a member of the Association, and you don’t need to be a member of any club. The only requirements are to have caught your fish according to the strict angling rules, that you can prove it was weighed on certified scales, and that you fill out the IGFA’s record application form and provide the required photographs and documentation. This is all explained on the IGFA website, where you can also see the current world records list and download the application form — check out igfa.org/world-records.
With thousands of eligible species on the books and multiple line class options in each, there are a great many opportunities for you to set a new world record. Of course, some of the most popular species are fiercely competed for. These records, in all line classes, may seem impossible to break — unless, as sometimes happens, you get freakishly lucky. However, in relation to some of the more obscure species there is a very real potential to achieve a world record with only a little targeted effort.
CONCEIVED IN AUSTRALIA
The International Game Fish Foundation is now based in Florida, USA, but what few people realise is that its genesis occurred in southern New South Wales, Australia.
Angling as a sport of skill was developing in Australia as early as 1902, inspired by the concept promoted by the sport’s originator, Dr. Charles Frederick Holder, who formed the famous Tuna Club on Santa Catalina Island off southern California in 1898.
The New South Wales Rod Fishers’ Society was formed in 1904 to promote sport fishing with rod and reel, and by 1933 they had a dedicated game fishing division. The world’s first black marlin caught on sporting tackle was landed off Port Stephens by Dr. Mark Lidwill in 1913.
1936. Although often controversial and generally considered ‘difficult,’ Grey is widely recognised as one of the most publicised and influential big game fishermen the world has ever known.
In the sport’s formative years before World War II, Australia’s leading game fishing administrator was Sydney businessman Clive Firth, who regularly fished off Bermagui and was President of the New South Wales Rod Fishers Society. Firth became the foundation President of the Game Fishing Association of Australia (GFAA) and also President of the New South Wales Game Fishing Association in 1938.
In 1939, it was Clive Firth who persuaded wealthy American businessman Michael Lerner — a leading big game angler — to experience the fishing off Bermagui with his scientific expedition from the New York Museum of Natural History.
It was during Lerner’s visit that Clive inspired him to establish a world body to administer the ethics and rules of the sport along the lines of what already existed in Australia. In late 1939, Lerner formed the International Game Fish Association in New York, and appointed Clive Firth as its first international representative. Mr. Lerner then personally administered and financed the running of the IGFA until 1960.
FAR MORE THAN RECORDS
The International Game Fish Association has always had a close working relationship with the scientific community, and has carried out groundbreaking research into species identification, species movement and distribution, and the protection of vulnerable stocks.
The IGFA is accredited with the United Nations Environment Programme, and the organisation is regularly involved in initiatives to protect fish stocks from overexploitation, or from damage due to habitat destruction and pollution.
One of the IGFA’s most exciting research programs in the past decade is the Great Marlin Race, in which anglers and businesses sponsor satellite tags that are attached to billfish and then released during regional tournaments. The fish are then tracked, with a winner announced for the fish that travels the furthest. The real benefit, however, is the astounding new knowledge learned about the movements and distribution of these special fish. This revolutionary citizen-science program has rewritten what is known about billfish!
Another of their current programs focuses on protecting forage fish — the small schooling species like sardines, slimy mackerel, and anchovies that are the primary food source for predators ranging from mulloway to tuna, seabirds, and whales. These vital bait fish feed on microscopic plankton and are often overlooked, however, their health directly impacts all species that rely on them.
TEACHING KIDS – AND MUCH MORE
The IGFA has a strong education program — one arm of which is committed to teaching more than 100,000 kids the skills of fishing, as well as the environment stewardship and ethics to do it well. With online courses plus comprehensive resource kits for clubs willing to host a structured ‘Fishing Clinic,’ our youth has never had such a great headstart into the wonderful world of fishing.
Over recent years, IGFA President Jason Schratwieser and his team distilled four worldwide priorities for particular focus: Conservation, Education, Rules and Recognition, and Development.
To engage and ensure direct involvement of the membership throughout the world, the IGFA then established regional councils to represent their sector of the globe. The recently appointed Oceania Council has strong involvement from Australia, with Chairman Brett Cleary being a Trustee of the IGFA and a past-President of the Game Fishing Association of Australia.
Each Council is divided into four committees devoted to making progress in each of the four priorities of the IGFA mission. I am a member of the Rules and Recognition Committee, so I will be looking for new ways to improve rules and give anglers additional means to recognise their achievements.
SUPPORT THE IGFA
You don’t need to be a member to reap many of the benefits provided by the IGFA, but you’ll certainly enjoy additional benefits if you support the organisation that does so much to protect and enhance your fishing.
For a small annual fee, you’ll enjoy member discounts, a monthly newsletter, and each year they post you the magnificent World Record Game Fishes book. The 2021 edition is 442 pages, including a detailed species guide. Membership is a good thing to do. Find out more at igfa.org.