USA Pentathlon CEO Rob Stull Elected President of Modern Pentathlon

Rob Stull, the chief executive officer for USA Modern Pentathlon, has been elected president of the International Modern Pentathlon Union for a four-year tenure that includes the 2028 Olympic Summer Games in Los Angeles.

The 64-year-old Stull, a four-time Olympian, will become the second American to lead the federation as he succeeds Germany’s Klaus Schormann in the role. Stull edged Sharif El Erian from Egypt 53-48 to get elected. France’s Joel Bouzou was eliminated in the first round of voting before Stull defeated El Erian following two more rounds of voting at the 73rd UIPM Congress in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“It was a great race and it was like a sporting event,” Stull said. “It’s the capstone of my career, for sure. 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.”

Starting at the LA28 Games, modern pentathlon will replace equestrian riding with obstacle racing after a long process that took several years. Modern pentathlon is a five-sport event that, for LA 28, will include fencing (one-touch epee), freestyle swimming, obstacle course racing, laser pistol shooting and cross-country running.

“It’s exciting with the new fifth discipline and it’s here now,” Stull said. “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.”

Stull competed in the Olympics for the United States in both fencing and modern pentathlon. Stull was an alternate to the 1984 U.S. Olympic modern pentathlon team, competed in both fencing and modern pentathlon at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, then competed in modern pentathlon at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

Stull won four Division I national championships in men’s epee in his late 20s and early 30s, earning titles in 1989, 1990, 1992 and 1995. He has been a UIPM Executive Board member since 2016.

“Rob has a lot of experience based on having been at almost all competitions in recent years, so he knows the grassroots, he knows the leaders, he knows all about the changes in our sport and it’s important that the leader has this deep knowledge,” Schormann said. “He is a well-connected, friendly person and that’s what you need to be a president.”