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≡ UIPM CONGRESS ≡
Bucking the odds, USA Pentathlon Managing Director Rob Stull won election as the President of the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM), in a dramatic, three-round voting sequence at the 73rd UIPM Congress in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Three candidates ran, with France’s Joel Bouzou, 69, seen as the favorite; he had been the UIPM Secretary General for 15 years and a 1984 Olympic bronze medalist. Egypt’s Sharif El Erian, 54, was a 1992 Olympian and the head of the Egyptian federation, which has become one of the best in the sport.
American Stull was a four-time U.S. Olympian in the sport, and a long-time advocate for the inclusion of obstacle racing. Now 64, he was the Managing Director of USA Pentathlon, and has been a UIPM Executive Board member since 2016.
The UIPM statement explained the drama of Saturday’s vote:
“In the first round, Sharif El Erian of Egypt won 42 votes, Stull (USA) won 38 and Joel Bouzou of France was eliminated after winning 22 votes.
“In the second round, El Erian (EGY) again scored the highest with 51 votes, one more than the 50 votes of Stull (USA), with one abstention. This caused loud celebrations and congratulations from supporters of the UIPM Vice President, but according to Article 10.2 of the UIPM Election Rules, where the rule of absolute majority applies:
“‘Absolute majority’ requires the successful candidate to receive at least one more than half of the total number of votes cast. In assessing the total number of votes cast in relation to a requirement for an absolute majority, odd numbers are to be rounded up.
“A third round of voting was organised, and this time Stull (USA) won 53 votes against 48 for El Erian (EGY), with one abstention.”
Stull was no doubt aided by the reality that the 2028 Olympic Games will be held in the U.S. and that an American will be better positioned to safeguard modern pentathlon’s place with the IOC and the LA28 organizers. But it’s still a surprise.
Said Stull:
“It hasn’t sunk in yet. The rules are the rules and, at the end of the day, that’s the way it went. There was a five-vote margin at the end, which is still very close.
“We have to get right to work, because Paris 2024 was phenomenal for Modern Pentathlon. The bar has been raised, and we have to meet that bar. We will get straight to work.
“It’s exciting with the new fifth discipline, and it’s here now. There are more opportunities for Modern Pentathlon now. Every sport has to innovate, but we have done that innovation and now it’s time to reap the rewards. I will man the helm and we will work with a great team and go from there.”
The UIPM has more elections to come, notably on what role exiting President Klaus Schormann (GER) will play, potentially as an “Honorary President.” But Stull joins David Haggerty of the International Tennis Federation as the only Americans to currently head an International Federation.
And Stull has a lot of work in front of him, as the UIPM continues as the smallest and least well-known of all of the Olympic-program sports. It will receive about $15 million for its share of the International Olympic Committee’s Paris 2024 television rights, which will have to stretch across four years, unless Stull can accelerate his sport’s visibility, popularity and commercial attractiveness.
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