Founded by Professor T. Yokobori in 1965, the International Congress on Fracture (ICF) is today the premier international body for promotion of worldwide cooperation among scientists and engineers concerned with the mechanics and mechanisms of fracture, fatigue and strength of solids. Over the years, ICF has made considerable progress in providing an international forum for highlighting individual and national accomplishments in the overall field of fracture. The aims of the Congress are to foster research in the mechanics and phenomena of fracture, fatigue, and strength of materials for development of materials which are better failure-resistant than the conventional materials and development of design methods that are better failure-safe than the conventional ones; to promote international co-operation among scientists and engineers in the field, and integration of the many discipline involved in such research; and to provide means whereby results of such efforts may be publicly communicated.