The maximum leader of Chilean Olympism is proud of the growth and recognition that exists both within its borders and internationally. Miguel Angel Mujica Brain knows that the last Pan American Games catapulted his institution to a place of privilege and now aspires to a comprehensive development of high performance sport in each of the regions of Chile.

To learn more about the COCH, SportsIn came to the offices of the Olympic Training Centre in Santiago de Chile and had a one-on-one with Mujica Brain, in an open and direct dialogue.

How did you become president of the Chilean Olympic Committee?

“When Neven Ilic took over the presidency of Panam Sports he forced us to call new elections and I was elected president to complete that 2-year period – elections included – to complete the term (2017 – 2020). Then came the re-election for the Olympic cycle 2020-2024, where I had the great support of the national sports federations to continue at the head of the Olympic Committee of Chile and this year corresponds elections.

So…

I already informed that I had decided to run again, regardless of the fact that we are not in election time because our energies are focused on the participation of TEAM CHILE in the Paris 2024 Olympics and to continue to build on the work with the younger ones. In fact, we recently competed in the Bolivarian Youth Games in Sucre, Bolivia, where we came in third place with 117 medals in the medal table. I feel that we are on the right track, the pyramid base is in the athletes who tomorrow will be the replacement generation of Chilean sport.

What achievement would you highlight from your period?

Undoubtedly, the Pan American Games have been the highlight of our administration during these four years. We were faced with a challenge of unsuspected projections, but also a responsibility to comply in time and form with what was requested by Panam Sports, who have high standards of organisation and staging of each of the competitions.

We had no margin for error, despite the criticism for the delay in the construction of the sports venues as a result of the pandemic that hit us very hard and had us in check like the whole world. Despite that reality and emotional burden, I always had the conviction that these would be good games. I was certain of the superlative performance of our athletes with a landmark medal haul of 79 medals, but the turning point was the public. One can imagine, project, but not even the most optimistic could have estimated the turnout of fans who came to all the sporting venues. The connection between the athletes of the Americas and the spectators was, quite simply, like something out of a movie.

Imagine the repercussion it had in other latitudes, I was in South Korea participating with our TEAM CHILE in the Winter Youth Olympic Games and in those remote places they were talking about the successful Pan American Games Santiago 2023. There was no place that did not know about these games, they really appreciated to see a full coliseum with 40,000 people, but also, with a rain that was a real deluge and they did not move from their seats to see the athletics and the gold in the 400 meters event of Martina Weil Restrepo.

Sport has a turning point with the creation of the Olympic Plan. Moreover, there were experiences with the philosophy of several countries and, in the end, they decided that high performance sport should have its own stamp, identity and long-term projection. Do you agree with this definition?

The Olympic Plan has indeed produced a turning point in Chilean sport. We are seeing the results, both qualitatively and quantitatively. Just one example: for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games, we had a long list of 2,340 athletes. In other words, there is raw material. Planned, structured and follow-up work yields results because, I insist, high performance is a matter of analysis. It can be measured and projected with very low margins of error.

In the end, at the Panam Games we had 665 athletes competing in practically all sports, which shows us an interesting universe. Without leaving anyone behind, we give the possibility that everyone can make it, regardless of the fact that there are some sports – such as rowing – that by their very nature could be prioritised, but it is the result of their sustained work over time and because we have our own Training Centre in Curauma.

There are also other experiences on this side of the continent, such as Colombia, which has as many athletes as we do, but in fewer sports and, therefore, they have specialised in prioritising specific sports where they obtain very good results. I reiterate, we are very happy with the work of all the federations achieving relevant results and that motivates us to continue in this line of planning.

You said at the time that the Pan American Games were your cornerstone and, incidentally, your greatest challenge as a leader and lover of Chilean Olympic sport. I can’t help but ask you, at what point did you make the decision to run again for the Chilean Olympic Committee for the new period 2024-2028 and what motivates you?

Obviously, to fulfil the Games, to meet the deadlines, to be able to solve the multiple problems that an organisation of this magnitude and magnitude had and to carry it out successfully, there is no doubt that it encourages you, it gives you encouragement, but if there is something that moves and motivates me to continue, it is the athletes with whom I have a very special relationship. Not only when they win, but also when they lose, you have to be with them because they need you and you have to walk with them.

So after the Pan American Games Santiago 2023 I decided to communicate my decision to stand again for the elections at the end of the year. Now, there are still many things to do, above all to change mentalities in the new governance and relations with the highest authorities in sport, but also, looking at it from a regional point of view or the territorial decentralisation of sport, we have a debt because we have concentrated sport, as in many other activities, in Santiago de Chile, so being able to take the National Games to the regions, giving them the prominence they deserve, is an unmistakable sign to expand and go beyond what we traditionally do.

Not to be self-referential, but we finally managed to get a National Games from 6 sports to 14 sports and I hope that in the near future there will be 28 and every 2 years, even more, we invited the Chilean Paralympic Committee to take part with the athletes for nationals.

As the months go by, Chile is becoming a meeting point as a result of the Legacy of the Games. Just to name a few: Special Olympics World Games (2027), World Cycling Championships (2025), South American Basketball Championship (2024), among others. Do you feel that the first fruits of the Games are beginning to be seen?

I have been asked by the government and the federations themselves to look at the possibility of increasing the number of events in the coming years, to be able to apply seriously and bring international level championships to give strength and competition to our athletes at home. If there is something that complicates our preparation to compete in the big leagues, it is the distance with the great powers that are in Europe and other continents. Today we can bring them to compete, we can no longer complain about the infrastructure. Now we have to see how we can better organise and generate the necessary funding to make these events a platform of great South American or Pan American propulsion.

How did this strong bond with the sport come about, where does it come from and what does the family mean to you?

I was at school when I was invited to play a specific sport and that over time would become my sport for life, I mean rugby, then I came as a player to the Stade Francais club and I had an injury that prevented me from continuing to compete, but I had the good fortune to have a coach and judge who invited me to be a referee and I became an international judge. I had the privilege of refereeing in South Africa and all over South America. Subsequently, I was invited by Club Deportivo Universidad Católica to be part of the rugby branch and from there I worked my way up to the presidency of the branch and then treasurer of the CDUC Foundation.

In this leadership journey I became president of the Chilean Rugby Federation and, from 2004, I accompanied Neven Ilic in the Chilean Olympic Committee, I was vice-president for 13 years and now as president since 2017.

You also ask me about my family, I thank you, because if there is something I have to thank God and life is to have my wife Marisol, without her nothing would be possible, she is my lifeline, always encouraging me, motivating me, the leadership task when you assume it in property demands a lot of time and children suffer those consequences, fortunately. I have wonderful children who have given us 14 grandchildren, they are one of the most powerful reasons to continue motivated in my daily work as an engineer dedicated to construction, as in my role as president of the Chilean Olympic Committee.

I do not want to pass up the opportunity to recognise the work that Chilean leaders do on a daily basis on a voluntary basis, without receiving a penny. They are people who love sport and from their federation help the development of the activity, sorry, often criticised and unfairly denigrated, but with a conviction and commitment to sport rarely seen.