The outgoing President: Kim Andersen
The new president: Quanhai Li
The previous President of the Danish World Sailing Federation, Kim Andersen, who is still in office this Sunday, will hand over the helm to the Chinese Quanhai Li. In the second voting round, the national member associations (MNAs) voted 68:60 in favor of the new man at the World Sailing rudder. The result was announced on Sunday as part of the World Sailing annual conference in the online live broadcast. Previously, the Spaniard Gerardo Seeliger and the American Scott Perry had not survived the first voting round. This had initially let the incumbent President Kim Andersen take the lead in the fight for his re-election. The Dane received 53 votes in the first ballot, while Quanhai Li, who has been Vice President since 2013, received 39 votes. Seeliger and Perry were eliminated with 21 and 15 votes, respectively. In the second round, Quanhai Li was able to overtake Andersen.
The results of the second and decisive round of elections
The results of the first round of elections
The 58-year-old Quanhai Li is considered a friendly and committed sailing sports sponsor and has twice been a member of the groups that promoted China's applications to host the Olympic Games in 2000 and - successfully - in 2008. Li was also heavily involved in bringing World Cup regattas to the Olympic district in Qingdao. As an international jury member at major regattas, Quanhai Li has over 20 years of experience. Quanhai Li is the acting Vice President of the Chinese Sailing Association and acting President of the Chinese Rowing Association.
Annual meeting November 2020
Several media outlets, including the South ChinMorning Post, reported that Li could take on his new role with a major sponsorship deal: He said real estate developer Evergrade would have a US $ 10 million in the event of Li's election. Dollar engagement promised. When asked about the most important next step for the World Sailing Federation, all four presidential candidates had answered in published interviews before the election. Quanhai Li said: "It would be a policy that strengthens, covers and promotes World Sailing's financial security with a newly developed model of operation." With Quanhai Li, a Chinese takes over the presidency of the world association of an Olympic summer sport for the first time.
He performed confidently and gave the members courage for the future: World Sailings British CEO David Graham
The results of the election of the vice-presidents. On the left are the seven candidates who were able to prevail
The seven vice-presidents were also elected on Sunday. While DSV sports director Nadine Stegenwalner did not apply for a second term and wants to focus on other tasks, four men and three women were elected: Tomasz Chamer (Poland), Sarah Kenny (Australia), Philip Baum (South Africa), Yann Rocherieux (France), Duriye Özlem Akdurak (Turkey), Marcus Spillane (Ireland) and Cory Sertl (USA). The Italians LucDevoti and Ricardo Simoneschi are among the most prominent candidates who failed in this vice-presidential election.
Dierk Thomsen
Otto Schlenzka
From a German point of view, the awarding of the prestigious Beppe Croce Trophy by the still incumbent President Kim Andersen on this election Sunday was remarkable. The trophy puts the spotlight on outstanding volunteer work by personalities in the sport of sailing. In the face of his own electoral defeat, the Danish World Sailing President Kim Anderson obviously struggled through the mammoth program on the final Sunday of the annual conference, but gave a detailed and warm reminder of the German award winner who died on October 8th. Thomsen's services to national and international sailing make the man from Kiel, who was a member of the Kieler Yacht Club for 66 years and who pushed and organized so much from the "Sailing City" and gave his heart and soul to the sport of sailing, an extremely worthy prize winner. Before Thomsen, in the 32-year history of the Beppe Croce trophy, kings, outstanding sailors and designers as well as the former IOC President Jacques Rogge had received the trophy. Yacht designer Olin Stephens and Olympic star Paul Elvstrøm are among the honored. As the only German before Thomsen, his club mate Otto "Ötte" Schlenzk, who died in 2015, was awarded the prize in 1995.