Following a close and highly contentious election, Robert Stull of the US was elected the new president of the modern pentathlon, edging out strong Egyptian contender Sherif Al-Erian.

Despite the loss, Al-Erian, president of the Egyptian Modern Pentathlon Federation, was elected the first vice-president of the International Union of the Modern Pentathlon (UIPM), receiving 74 per cent of the vote. He also became a member of the UIPM Executive Office for the 2024-2028 session.  

The highly-charged two-day election held in Riyadh starting 16 November saw the vote go to three rounds before Stull came out the winner 53-48 with one abstention.

In the first round, Al-Erian collected 42 votes and Stull 38 at the International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM) Congress. Joel Bouzou of France was eliminated after winning just 22 votes.

The second round proved to be extremely controversial. Al-Erian again scored the highest with 51 votes, one more than Stull, with one abstention. This caused loud celebrations and congratulations from Al-Arian’s supporters but according to Article 10.2 of the UIPM election rules, the rule of absolute majority applied:

“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.”

Al-Erian was disappointed that a third round was held, believing the election should have ended after two rounds and he be declared the winner.

After the results were announced, Egypt submitted an official objection to the sport’s electoral commission and the president of the general assembly. “If they reject the grievance, Egypt will take the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” Al-Erian, who is also secretary-general of the Egyptian Olympic Committee, said.

The Egyptian Modern Pentathlon Federation (EMPF) said “unfortunate events” led Egypt to file a complaint with the Electoral Commission.

“After Engineer Sherif Al-Erian won the second round with a majority, the Judicial Committee decided to hold a third round because an absolute majority was not achieved due to an incorrect interpretation of the law that stipulates the application of an absolute majority in the event of more than two candidates, while the second round was held between only two candidates, namely the Egyptian Sherif Al-Erian and the American Stull.”

After the Electoral Commission insisted on holding a third round, Stull was announced the winner, sparking noticeable displeasure in the General Assembly.

Stull takes over from German Klaus Schormann. He will serve until 2028, a tenure that will include the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games taking place in his home country.

Despite the loss, many other Egyptian officials fared well. Egypt’s administrative cadres took control of the UIPM elections which witnessed a strong Egyptian presence in the executive office and various committees of the UIPM.

At the level of committees, Ali Assem, an EMPF board member, was elected a member of the international federation’s technical committee after beating all his competitors in the first round.

Jawed Khawar, the performance analyst for the Egyptian national team, was elected a member of the executive office for development in the UIPM after receiving 52 votes in the second round, beating the legendary Janzo Piak, the Polish candidate and 1976 Olympic gold medalist, who received 48 votes.

Dr Musa Nassif and Dr Basil Gamil, chairman of the medical committee of the Egyptian Federation, were elected members of the UIPM Medical Committee.

On the sidelines of the elections, other activities and meetings were held. Walid Khalil, president of the Arab Modern Pentathlon Union (AMPU), chaired the first meeting of the federation’s board of directors in Riyadh, where the agenda was presented and decisions were taken to “activate the Arab Union”.

In elections held by Arab federations, Khalil retained his position as president of the Arab Union. Nasser Al-Walid was elected first vice-president, Mohamed Galal second vice-president, Razan Al-Abed, vice-president for women, and Shadi Abdel-Aziz, secretary-general and treasurer of the union. Members included Hoda Al-Matroushi, Ibrahim Zein, Fathi Al-Mahshash, Amr Ashour and Olympic Paris gold medalist of the sport Ahmed Al-Gendi as chairman of the Players’ Committee.