Sharif Al-Erian competes in UIPM Elections

Sharif Al-Erian, Vice president of the International Union of Modern Pentathlon (UIPM) has announced his intention to go for the President’s seat of the international body earlier this year. The former pentathlete Al-Erian is also the Secretary General of the Egyptian Olympic Committee.

The elections are scheduled to be held at the 73rd UIPM Congress on 16&17 November in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The UIPM is scheduled to elect a new President as German Klaus Schorman, now 78, is retiring after becoming President in 1993 and has served until now.

However, Al-Erian is not alone in these elections. He will face tough competition from two other candidates; Frenchman Joel Bouzou and USA Rob Stull.

The UIPM have introduced a brief bio of each of the three candidates as follows; Joel Bouzou (FRA): Now 69, he was the men’s bronze medalist at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, the 1987 World Champion, and is the obvious favourite, having been the UIPM Secretary General for 15 years beginning in the late 1990s. He has been a UIPM Vice President since 2012. According to the UIPM, “Insiders say that Bouzou has been campaigning hard and does not feel favored or a shoo-in”.

Sharif El Erian (EGY): A 1992 Olympian for Egypt, now 54, El Erian is the head of the Egyptian Modern Pentathlon Federation. That’s important, as Egypt has become a major power in the sport during his tenure, with Ahmed El-Gendi winning the Paris men’s gold this summer, and silver Olympic medal in the previous Olympics, Tokyo 2020 and Egyptian entries winning nine medals in the last three Worlds. “If anyone can claim development credentials, he can. Can he carry the African and Middle East federations? A sign of possible doubt: he is also running as a candidate for Vice President should he not be elected President”, the UIPM website wrote.

The third candidate is the Rob Stull (USA): A four-time U.S. Olympian in the sport, Stull was one of the long-time advocates for obstacle racing in the sport. Now 64, he is the Managing Director of USA Pentathlon and the head of the North American, Central American and Caribbean (NORCECA) confederation. He has been a UIPM Executive Board member since 2016.

Since announcing his intention to go for the elections of the Presidential seat, Al-Erian have been supported by the Egyptian pentathlon community. On behalf of the Egyptian pentathlon family; athletes, coaches and administrations, the Paris Olympic gold medalist Ahmed Al-Gendi took to social media in support of Al-Erian with an emotional message.

“Dear Sharif Ahmed El Erian, on behalf of all of us at the Egyptian Modern Pentathlon community, I want to express our immense pride in you. Your dedication and leadership have been a beacon of inspiration for us all. As you go through the elections of the International Federation, please remember that win or lose, our admiration and support for you remain unwavering. Your journey and efforts have already made us proud beyond words. Thank you for representing us with such honor and distinction. Sincerely, Egyptian Modern Pentathlon Family”.

Proud of his pentathlon community, Al-Erian, dubbed as the God-father of the sport wrote back; “Thank you Ahmed Osama Al-Gendi for those kind inspiring words. My greatest happiness is in serving the athletes and all our pentathlon community. This to me is more important than anything. If elected president of UIPM I will have the honor of serving all our worldwide pentathlon family (equally & honestly). Long live our beloved sport, Modern Pentathlon”.