Francesco Purromuto elected as new President of the International Committee of the Mediterranean Games.
The 36th General Assembly of the International Committee of the Mediterranean Games concluded on Thursday morning in Taranto, just days before the opening of the Taranto 2026 Mediterranean Games, with representatives of all 26 member National Olympic Committees in attendance.
The Assembly was held at the Congress Hall of the Ethra Reserve hotel complex in Castellaneta, near Taranto, and resulted in the election of Francesco Purromuto as the new President of the International Committee of the Mediterranean Games.
The meeting brought together senior representatives of the Mediterranean sports movement, including IOC members Jean-Christophe Rolland, Mustapha Berraf, Aya Medany and Spyros Capralos.
The Assembly opened with a welcome from Mehrez Boussayene, First Vice-President of the ICMG, who had assumed the presidency of the organisation following the death of former president Davide Tizzano. Boussayene, himself a well-known figure within the Olympic movement and an IOC member, addressed the delegates on behalf of the Executive Board.
He expressed his satisfaction at seeing representatives of all 26 member countries gathered for the 36th General Assembly and praised the close cooperation and sustained efforts of the ICMG leadership and the Taranto 2026 organising team in the preparation of the Games.
ICMG executive board – Taranto 2026
Boussayene also expressed his gratitude to the Italian authorities for their support, specifically thanking the Italian Government, the Minister for Sport and Youth and the Mayor of Taranto for their contribution to the organisation of the Games.
He highlighted the intensive work carried out by ICMG Secretary General Iakovos Filippousis, together with the executive members of the organising committee, saying that he had followed their efforts closely and was fully aware of the long road and numerous challenges that had to be overcome in order to bring Taranto to the point of hosting the Mediterranean Games.
Boussayene also paid tribute to the volunteers working alongside the organising committee, recognising their important role in supporting the organisation and ensuring that the Games could be delivered effectively.
Among the speakers at the General Assembly were Piero Bitetti, Mayor of Taranto, and Luciano Buonfiglio President of the Italian National Olympic Committee, who addressed the delegates on behalf of the host city and Italian sport.
Spyros Capralos
However, the presence of Spyros Capralos, President of the European Olympic Committees and IOC member, gave the Assembly particular significance. Capralos attended as the representative of IOC President Kirsty Coventry and delivered a message from the IOC leadership to the ICMG, the Taranto 2026 organising committee and the National Olympic Committees belonging to the Mediterranean Games movement.
Capralos also has a personal connection with the Mediterranean Games. He competed as a swimmer at the 1971 Mediterranean Games in Izmir, giving his remarks an additional perspective as both a former athlete and a senior figure within the Olympic movement.
He stressed that the Mediterranean Games should continue to serve as an important platform for elite athletes and called on National Olympic Committees to give their full support to the development of the event.
“President Kirsty Coventry asked me to convey her warmest greetings and congratulations to the International Committee of the Mediterranean Games, the Taranto 2026 Organising Committee and all the National Olympic Committees that are members of the ICMG,” Capralos said.
“We must ensure that the Mediterranean Games continue to grow and flourish. The recent period has not been an easy one. However, thanks to the commitment and efforts of everyone involved, and particularly the tireless work of Secretary General Iakovos Filippousis, this movement has remained united.”
The 36th General Assembly of the IMCG
Capralos’s remarks underlined the importance of maintaining the unity of the Mediterranean sports movement at a time when the Games are entering a new phase under new leadership.
The election of Francesco Purromuto as the new ICMG President therefore marks an important moment for the organisation, coming immediately before the start of the 20th edition of the Mediterranean Games in Taranto.
The Assembly also provided an opportunity for senior Olympic officials to engage directly with the Mediterranean sports community and to reaffirm the importance of the Games as a competition connecting athletes and National Olympic Committees from Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Aya Medany: The Mediterranean Games bring different cultures together
On the sidelines of the General Assembly, Aya Medany, former member of the IOC Athletes’ Commission and current IOC member, spoke briefly to SportsIn about the development and importance of the Mediterranean Games.
Aya Medany
Medany welcomed the continued growth of the event and described the Games as a valuable meeting point for athletes representing different cultures, backgrounds and traditions across Africa, Europe and the Middle East.
She emphasised that, despite the differences between the countries and cultures represented at the Games, athletes compete under the same sporting rules.
“The sports rules are the same for all of these athletes,” Medany told SportsIn, highlighting the common sporting framework that brings competitors from the three regions together.
For Medany, this shared sporting environment is one of the defining characteristics of the Mediterranean Games and one of the reasons the event remains significant within the international sporting calendar.
She also pointed to the presence of young and emerging athletes as one of the elements that gives the Mediterranean Games a distinctive character compared with many other international competitions.
According to Medany, these young athletes arrive at the Games determined to demonstrate everything they are capable of, often seeing the Mediterranean Games as an important opportunity to establish themselves on the international stage.
General Assembly
That ambition, she said, contributes to an atmosphere of enthusiasm and excitement that makes the Mediterranean Games different from other sporting events.
With the 36th General Assembly now concluded and Francesco Purromuto taking over as the new President of the ICMG, attention will turn fully to the competition itself.
The Taranto 2026 Mediterranean Games, bringing together athletes from the 26 member countries, are now set to begin with the ICMG entering a new chapter under its newly elected leadership.
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