The Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) has officially confirmed Mustapha Berraf and Alejandro Blanco as the two candidates for its presidency. Published on 13 October, the announcement formalises two already known candidacies and follows the agreement between the two leaders to propose a rotating presidency. The statement neither mentions nor approves that understanding, but it also provides no indication that it has changed.
Berraf, President of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA), and Blanco, President of the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE), secured the necessary nominations and endorsements before the 9 September deadline. According to ANOC, their candidacies were communicated to National Olympic Committees before 9 October. The new development is therefore the public confirmation of the two names in the electoral process.
Two candidacies and a shared proposal
The agreement reached in Nagoya proposes dividing the 2026–2030 term into two stages: Berraf would hold the presidency for the first two years, with Blanco taking over from 2028 to 2030. Both announced a coordinated approach and a joint programme, subject to the ANOC Constitution, electoral procedures and General Assembly approval. That condition remains essential: the agreement between the candidates must be implemented within the organisation’s rules.
The presence of two names on the official list is not, in itself, enough to portray the election as a return to an electoral contest between them. Their announced understanding was precisely to coordinate their respective candidacies. The 13 October statement simply confirms their formal status, without explaining how the proposed rotation might work. That question remains unanswered in the information published by ANOC.
8 November: the next key date
The next step will be the distribution of the General Assembly agenda and supporting documents, including proposals from National Olympic Committees, by 8 November. Those documents will make it possible to establish whether the joint proposal has been formally included and, if so, which decisions will be put to members. Until then, the mechanism for sharing the presidency cannot be regarded as approved.
The leadership renewal also includes the election of the Senior Vice President and confirmation of the continental Vice Presidents. The former is elected by the General Assembly from among the Vice Presidents, who are chosen by the five continental associations. These decisions will complete ANOC’s leadership and should be followed alongside the presidential election to understand how the next administration will take shape.
Berraf and Blanco have presented their alliance as a way to strengthen unity and continuity within the organisation. The next step will be to turn that intention into a proposal that National Olympic Committees can examine and vote on. Confirmation of their candidacies completes a procedural step; the arrangements for a rotating presidency remain unresolved.
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