Four nominations were received for the position of President: Denis Oswald (SUI), John Boultbee (AUS), Jean-Christophe Rolland (FRA) and Tricia Smith (CAN).

Denis Oswald, who has been FISA president since 1989, announced earlier this year at FISA’s 2013 Extraordinary Congress that he would seek re-election but only for a transitional period of six to eight months. The FISA Council had agreed to stage the election of Oswald’s successor at the same Congress in order to assist the newly elected "president-elect" in the transfer of knowledge and introductions around in the international sports world.

Presentation of FISA presidential candidates:

•    Denis OSWALD from Switzerland competed in three Olympic Games winning a bronze medal in 1968. He has 13 Swiss National Championships and has won the Royal Henley Regatta. He started as FISA Secretary General in 1978 and served in this position until 1989 when he took over as President and has been in that position for 24 years. In 1991 he was elected to be a member of the International Olympic Committee and served 12 years on the IOC Executive Board until 2012. He was chair of the IOC’s Coordination Commission for both the Athens 2004 and London 2012 Olympic Games. Denis also served as president of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) for 12 years. He is a doctor of law having received his degree from Neuchatel University including studying at Cambridge and Zurich. He has had his own law firm and became a law professor in 2001. He has been an arbitrator at the Court of Arbitration for Sport since 1984 and has served on many high profile cases at CAS.

•    John BOULTBEE from Australia was a lawyer until 1989 when he became FISA’s General Secretary, a position he would occupy until 1995. For the following six years Boultbee served as Director of the Australian Institute of Sport and has since 2004 been the Head of National Teams for Australia’s Football Federation. Boultbee has participated in nine Olympic Games and 39 World Rowing Championships in various positions at the team management, NOC and FISA levels. He has also taken part in 38 FISA Congresses either as a delegate, as FISA’s Secretary General or a FISA Council member. A cox and rowing coach at school, club and university, he has been a member of the FISA Executive Committee since 2004.

•    Jean-Christophe ROLLAND from France is the youngest of the three presidential candidates. Rolland holds a Master’s Degree in electrical, electronics and communications engineering and has worked for EDF, one of the world’s leading electric utility companies, since 1993. He was first an engineer, then a regional Deputy Director before being appointed as the Human Resources Director of his business unit. Rolland managed EDF’s sponsorship with the London 2012 Olympic Games Organising Committee. The French rower participated in three Olympic Games, winning bronze in Atlanta and gold in Sydney. He also holds five World Championship medals including two gold. Appointed to FISA’s Athletes Commission in 1994, Rolland served as Chair of the Commission from 2002 to 2011 and served on FISA’s Executive Committee from 2004 to 2011, at which time the FISA Council appointed him as a co-opted member.

•    Tricia SMITH from Canada practised law for seven years before joining Barnes, Craig and Associates in 1992 where she is now one of four partners and Deputy Managing Director. She is a qualified Sport Arbitrator and a member of the International Council of Arbitration for Sport. Smith was a member of the Canadian Rowing Team from 1976 to 1988 and was selected to four Olympic teams, winning Olympic silver at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games as well as 7 World Championship medals. Smith has been a member of the FISA Women’s Commission, then Chair of the Commission, and also a member of the FISA Executive Committee since 1999. She is also Member/Chair of a majority of the FISA Doping Appeal Hearing Panels.

Two other positions on FISA’s Executive Committee, those of Vice-President and Treasurer, are also open for election. There are two candidates for the position of Vice-President: FISA’s current vice-president Anita L. De Frantz (USA) and Tricia Smith.  FISA’s current treasurer, Mike Williams (GBR) is re-presenting himself and is the only candidate for this position.

You may find the biographies of the candidates on the FISA Congress web page, here.