The crisis is over. But it made a big splash and could leave its mark. Meeting in a virtual elective congress in Monaco, the International Union of Modern Pentathlon (UIPM) ratified, on Sunday November 28, the decision of its executive committee to remove horse riding from the discipline's program. She also re-elected German Klaus Schormann as president of the body for a new four-year term – the eighth in a row.
In the words of the UIPM, the 71st congress “ will go down in history“. For sure. But its historical character comes more from the context than from its results. It was preceded by a period of controversy and dissension rarely experienced in the long history of modern pentathlon. Several weeks during which the governance of the body was attacked, by the athletes and by several international federations, the first going so far as to demand the resignation of the executive committee.
After such a period of tremors, the congress promised to be stormy. Surprise, he delivered results showing a broad consensus.
The only candidate for re-election, Klaus Schormann was renewed for a new four-year lease. He will therefore lead the UIPM until 2024, or for at least 31 years, having taken the reins for the first time in 1993. Until then, nothing very unexpected. But the score achieved by the German leader may be surprising: Klaus Schormann obtained 85,71% of the votes. Strong.
The four current vice-presidents, the French Joël Bouzou, the Spaniard Juan Antonio Samaranch, the Russian Viacheslav Aminov and the Mexican Juan Manzo Orañegui, were also re-elected for a new mandate. The Egyptian Sharif Elerian will now accompany them, in the same position, within the executive committee. Proof that the storm was indeed extinguished by the team in place, Juan Antonio Samaranch obtained more than 90% of the votes of the delegates.
Another hot topic, and another consensus: the removal of horse riding from the modern pentathlon program. The issue should have divided the sport's community, after calls earlier in the month from a large group of athletes, past and present, against such a change. Upon arrival, the decision did not change. By an unqualified score of 81%, the UIPM Congress voted for the elimination of show jumping from the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
The international body explains it: “ The ratification of the congress allows stakeholders to continue the consultation process on the 5th discipline with the official support of the global community"
What happens next is still unclear. The UIPM explains having submitted a “ provisional proposal » to the IOC Program Commission, before its meeting on December 1st. But she did not reveal its nature. Mystery. She just clarified that, once the consultation is over, the final choice of the 5th sport will come back to the congress. He will be called to vote next year at this time.
Reaction from Klaus Schormann: “ The strong majority in favor of this decision confirms that the UIPM Executive Committee acted in the interest of the modern pentathlon family. The debate was fair, open and very clear"
Same speech, with a few nuances, for Juan Antonio Samaranch: “ We are at a watershed moment for modern pentathlon. In the past, we have organized our defense on tradition. But the world has changed dramatically – we have entered a digital age where everything is measurable. In such a context, it is not good to appear before the IOC with only emotions and traditions. »
The storm has passed. It now remains for the UIPM and its governance to find a fifth sport capable of meeting all the criteria: inexpensive, accessible, without major logistics, modern and spectacular, but also compatible with the new format of modern pentathlon at the Olympic Games ( all events contested in 90 minutes). Not easy. The rest, its validation by the body's congress, does not appear to be the most complicated.
