Paris (AFP)
The Englishman Bill Beaumont was re-elected for a four-year term until 2024 as president of World Rugby, and the Frenchman Bernard Laporte becomes his vice-president, the International Federation announced in a statement on Saturday.
Sir Bill Beaumont, 68, won the election against Argentinian Agustin Pichot, who was his vice-president between 2016 and 2020. The Englishman totaled 28 votes out of a total of 51, compared to 23 for Pichot.
The election began on April 26 and ended on April 30. The announcement of the results was scheduled for May 12, at the next meeting of the council of the body, but World Rugby was able to advance its process, with the agreement of all the parties.
The president of the French Rugby Federation, Bernard Laporte (56), made common cause with the Englishman by applying for the vice-presidency, in this campaign held in the context of health and economic crisis, consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The campaign was notably marked by the controversy surrounding the president of the Fijian Federation and Beaumont's weighty support, Francis Kean, a time applying for the executive committee, whose candidacy was ultimately withdrawn in the face of accusations of homophobia.
Without a candidate facing him in 2016, Beaumont had been unanimously elected head of the international federation. He had succeeded the Frenchman Bernard Lapasset, president of the body between 2008 and 2016 and great craftsman of the return of rugby VII to the Olympic program for the Rio 2016 Olympics.
© 2020 AFP