Its main focus is coordinating between national HPV clubs with regard to competitions and records.
The WHPVA was originally called the IHPVA (International Human Powered Vehicle Association), which was founded in 1976 in the USA and was for many years an association of individual members.
Due to conflicts regarding record keeping and copyrights, the HPVA left the IHPVA in 2004.
The IHPVA tried to regain its domain by appealing to the ICANNs ombudsman but was unsuccessful and in 2009 itself renamed to WHPVA.
The best hour record is currently held by Francesco Russo of Switzerland with a total distance of 92.43 km (57.43 mi).