In the General Assembly of the International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation (IWAS) held in Vila Real de Santo Antonio, Portugal on Dec. 2, Maryam Shokouhi of Iran secured a place on the Board as members-at-large.
In the General Assembly of the International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation (IWAS) held in Vila Real de Santo Antonio, Portugal on Dec. 2, Maryam Shokouhi of Iran secured a place on the Board as members-at-large.
Frenchman Rudi Van den Abbeele was elected President of IWAS after he beat Pavel Rozhkov of Russia by 20 votes to 12.
Van Den Abbeele replaces Paul DePace, who is stepping down after serving 16 years in the role.
"My vast experience as an athlete, international classifier and educator, has allowed me the insight into the space for growth in the Paralympic Movement," said Van Den Abbeele.
"My position of President of IWAS is a new challenge to contribute to the organization’s growth in the coming four years alongside a highly-experienced Board.
"I look forward to bringing new projects and initiatives to benefit the athletes, our Member Nations and the global Paralympic Movement as a whole."
Rozhkov also failed with his bid to become a vice-president of the governing body as that position was claimed by Tariq Ahmad Bin Khadim Al Nuaimi of the United Arab Emirates.
Maryam Shokouhi, Ernesta Strydom of South Africa and Pal Szekeres of Hungary all secured a place on the Board as members-at-large.
They join incumbents Karl Vilhelm Nielsen of Denmark, Rozhkov and Greece's Dina Sotiriadi, all of whom retained their Board places.