The presidencies of COMINSPORT, COMINTECH, COMINOFF and COMINSAFE will all be contested at the 99th UIM General Assembly in Sintra, Portugal, on Sunday 25 October, according to the UIM’s candidate lists.
COMINSPORT is open, with current president Fred Hauenstein not standing for the post, leaving Vahur Joala and Pelle Larsson to contest it. The sitting presidents of COMINTECH, COMINOFF and COMINSAFE, Mikael Lundblad, Jean-Marie Van Lancker and Bob Wartinger, all face challengers. The Pleasure Navigation Commission has a single candidate.
Delegates will elect the presidents and members of all five commissions for 2026-2030, along with up to five Administrators for the same period.
Commission presidents
COMINSPORT
COMINSPORT is responsible for the UIM’s international sporting rules, the international racing calendar and record homologation. Hauenstein, the UIM’s Senior Vice-President, is seeking re-election as an Administrator and is standing for COMINSPORT membership rather than the presidency.
Vahur Joala
Background: Born in Pärnu in 1958, Joala raced in Estonia in the 1970s, winning medals at national youth championships. An engineer by training, he has been an international category judge since 2000 and was chief judge at five World Championships between 2000 and 2009 and four European Championships between 2001 and 2006.
Federation: Joined the board of the Estonian Powerboating Union in 2007, became vice-president in 2010 and president in 2011.
UIM roles: UIM Commissioner since 2009 and a COMINSPORT member since 2012. A UIM Administrator, reconfirmed at the 98th General Assembly in Shanghai in 2025. Sits on the UIM E1 Committee and the Environmental, Solar and Electric Working Group, and has served as the UIM class representative for F-125 and F-250. UIM Protest Judge in F2 in 2026.
If not elected: Remains a candidate for COMINSPORT membership.
Pelle Larsson
Background: A long-serving UIM official who has worked as a UIM Commissioner and race director in several classes. Previously a UIM Sports Commissioner in F2, he served as race director of the UIM F2 World Championship until standing down after the final round of the 2022 season, when he also resigned as Formulae Committee chairman.
Federation: Elected to the board of Svemo, Sweden’s national motorsport federation, in April 2026.
UIM roles: Chairman of the Formulae Committee, responsible for F2 and F4, having returned to the post he left in 2022. UIM Sports Commissioner at the 2026 UIM F2 World Championship rounds in Portugal.
If not elected: Remains a candidate for COMINSPORT membership.
COMINTECH
COMINTECH oversees technical rules, the testing of boats and equipment, and homologation procedures. Its president, Mikael Lundblad of Sweden, is seeking re-election against Luis Miguel Ribeiro of the Portuguese Powerboat Federation.
Mikael Lundblad
Background: An engineer trained in mechanics at Chalmers University of Technology, with a career in industrial research and development, including as a research manager at Sandvik Coromant.
Federation: A member of the Swedish federation’s offshore committee and an experienced race official at home, serving as race director at the Gävle offshore race in 2024.
UIM roles: Elected COMINTECH president at the 89th General Assembly in Fujairah in 2016 and re-elected in 2022. A COMINOFF member, standing again, and has carried out UIM engine documentation work for the offshore 3A and 3B classes. As a commission president he also sits on COMINSAFE and the Class 1 and Formulae committees.
If not re-elected: Remains a candidate for COMINTECH membership.
Luis Miguel Ribeiro
Background: A long-time racer and official in Portugal before moving into international race direction, he became full-time race director of the UIM F1H2O World Championship, overseeing all on-water activity at each Grand Prix.
F1H2O: Elected to the UIM Council at the 87th General Assembly in Ibiza in 2014. Appointed chairman of the Formula 1 Committee in October 2018, stepping up from vice-chairman to succeed Fred Hauenstein, and is pushing for a VAR-style live video review system in F1H2O.
UIM roles: Race director of the UIM F2 World Championship, where he has mentored Áron Tábori as a trainee race director. COMINSPORT member, standing again, and a member of the UIM commission for the Hydro GP at Żnin in Poland.
If not elected: Remains a candidate for COMINTECH membership, in which case Portugal will withdraw Gil Pedroso’s COMINTECH candidacy.
COMINOFF
COMINOFF president Jean-Marie Van Lancker of Belgium, also a UIM Vice-President, is challenged by Denis Dillon of the Powerboat Association of Northern Ireland, the current president of the Pleasure Navigation Commission.
Jean-Marie Van Lancker
Background: Technical organiser at the Class 1 offshore races in Ostend in the 1990s and head of the organisation behind the 2000 Grand Prix of Belgium, a round of the UIM F1 World Championship in Antwerp. Joined Powerboat P1 as Safety Officer in 2004 and rose to race director, and was race director of the 2013 Grand Prix of the Sea at Scheveningen. Among the organisers of the Belgian Offshore Championship.
Federation: President of the Belgian powerboat federation, a role he took on in 2005.
UIM roles: UIM Vice-President. Elected COMINOFF president at the 89th General Assembly in Fujairah in 2016 and re-elected in 2022. As a commission president he also sits on COMINSAFE and the Class 1 Committee.
If not re-elected: Automatically becomes a COMINOFF member candidate unless the Belgian National Authority objects. The UIM is awaiting its confirmation, as Belgium has entered Kathy Van den Hende as a COMINOFF member candidate.
Denis Dillon
Background: Has raced circuit and offshore at national and international level, including as a T850 driver with Team Powerboat Ireland at the UIM HR850 World Championship. Set a UIM world long-distance record with John Ryan in 2018 as team principal of All Black Racing, and has worked as a development officer with Irish Sailing.
Federation: Board member and UIM liaison of the Powerboat Association of Northern Ireland, the UIM National Authority for the island of Ireland since 2018.
UIM roles: UIM Administrator and a COMINOFF member. Appointed chairman of the Pleasure Navigation Commission by the UIM board and re-elected president in 2022. A UIM trainer within the Youth Development Programme and closely involved in the UIM’s education and training work.
If not elected: Not standing again for the Pleasure Navigation presidency, but a candidate for Pleasure Navigation membership.
COMINSAFE
COMINSAFE, the UIM’s International Medical and Safety Commission, consolidates safety rules across all racing disciplines and makes recommendations to the UIM Council on safety standards. Its president, Bob Wartinger of the American Power Boat Association, faces Fabrizio Boffi of the Italian Powerboat Federation.
Bob Wartinger
Background: Born in 1945, Wartinger first raced in Seattle in 1963. He set the world outboard speed record of 176.556 mph at Parker, Arizona, in 1989, won UIM Class 5 rigid-inflatable endurance world titles in 2004, 2005 and 2006, and has 24 APBA national and high-point championships. A six-time APBA Hall of Champions inductee, he entered the APBA Honor Squadron in 2005. His professional career was in engineering at Boeing.
Safety: Past chairman of the APBA Safety Committee and author of two books on racing safety, A Driver’s Guide to Boat Racing Safety and Safe Champions.
UIM roles: COMINSAFE president since 1990, which also places him on the UIM Class 1 and Formulae committees.
If not re-elected: Automatically becomes a COMINSAFE member candidate unless the APBA objects. The UIM is awaiting the APBA’s confirmation, as it has already entered Fred Hauenstein as a COMINSAFE member candidate.
Fabrizio Boffi
Background: A former Italian paratrooper and paratrooper instructor, with more than 35 years of diving experience, 25 of them as an instructor, and more than 100 rescue missions.
Rescue: Leads Bergamo Scuba Angels, the helicopter rescue diving team that serves as official rescue team for the Italian Powerboat Federation, UIM XCAT, Class 1 and UIM F2, covering between 35 and 40 events a season including E1. The team received the UIM Safety Award in Monaco in 2013.
UIM roles: COMINSAFE member, standing for re-election.
If not elected: Remains a candidate for COMINSAFE membership.
Pleasure Navigation
Sijbrand Booij of the Koninklijke Nederlandsche Motorboot Club is the only candidate to succeed Dillon as president of the Pleasure Navigation Commission. Booij is currently a member of the commission and a UIM Administrator.
Commission members
COMINSPORT has 14 candidates for eight seats. The list marks eight as seeking re-election: Ahmed Eisa Al Hosani (UAE), Martin Benne (Germany), Vahur Joala (Estonia), Pelle Larsson (Sweden), Petr Pylaev (Russia), Luis Miguel Ribeiro (Portugal), Wiktor Synoracki (Poland) and Aron Tabori (Hungary). They are challenged by Marzouq Al Mutairi and Ali Al Shamali (both Kuwait), Fred Hauenstein (USA), Karel Kramer (Czech Republic), Karolis Ramoska (Lithuania) and Pascal Reide (France).
COMINTECH has 11 candidates for eight seats. Jeff Broman (USA), Jari Lehtonen (Finland), Mikael Lundblad (Sweden), Gil Pedroso (Portugal) and Jerzy Wojewoda (Poland) are seeking re-election, with Ahmed Al Hosani (UAE), Jan Trygve Braaten (Norway), Max Gamarra (France), Ronan Keays (Northern Ireland), Fabio Negro (Italy) and Ribeiro also standing.
COMINOFF has 11 candidates for eight seats. Ahmed Alblooshi (UAE), Lundblad, Per Christian Skoglund (Norway) and Kathy Van den Hende (Belgium) are seeking re-election. The other candidates are Ali Al Shamali and Yousef Al Wattar (both Kuwait), Laura Maria Bettinardi (Italy), Todd De Phillips (USA), Gamarra, Claire Toohey (Northern Ireland) and Van Lancker.
COMINSAFE is the most competitive, with 11 candidates for four seats. Pernilla Blomqvist, now representing the Powerboat Association of Northern Ireland, Boffi and Reide are seeking re-election. They face Tareq Al Mulla and Faisal Noaman (both Kuwait), Hauenstein, Tom Lootens (Belgium), Alastair Nayler (Great Britain), Eddy Nehme (Lebanon), Wartinger and Wojewoda.
The Pleasure Navigation Commission has eight candidates for eight seats: Omar Azzopardi (Malta), Rifat Basharov (Russia), Matteo Boscolo (Italy), Jeff Buckley (USA), Denis Dillon (Northern Ireland), Miquel Mallafre (Spain), Robert Mould (Great Britain) and Kathy Van den Hende (Belgium). Mallafre and Van den Hende are seeking re-election.
Kuwait
Six candidacies from two Kuwaiti clubs, the Kuwait Sea Sports Club and the Kuwait Water Sports Club, are listed as subject to the General Assembly’s decision on the membership of Kuwait. They cover COMINSPORT, COMINOFF and COMINSAFE, with Al Shamali standing for two commissions. The lists do not set out the issue the Assembly will be asked to decide.
Administrators
Eight candidates are standing for up to five Administrator mandates. Sami Abu Shaikha (Qatar), Carla Chaghoury (Lebanon), Paulo Ferreira (Portugal) and Fred Hauenstein (USA) are seeking re-election. The other candidates are Frank Dettmering (Deutscher Motoryacht Verband), Davor Hundic (Croatian Jet Ski Association), Petr Pylaev (Russia) and Karolis Ramoska (Lithuania).
Pylaev chairs the UIM Formula Future Committee and Hundic is Croatia’s representative on the Aquabike Committee. Ferreira, president of the Portuguese Powerboat Federation, is also the host of this year’s Assembly, having brought the UIM’s Mid-Term Meetings to Lisbon in April. Hauenstein is the most widely nominated candidate, appearing on the Administrator, COMINSPORT and COMINSAFE lists.
99th UIM General Assembly
Sintra, Portugal, Sunday 25 October 2026. Elections for the presidents and members of COMINSPORT, COMINTECH, COMINOFF, COMINSAFE and the Pleasure Navigation Commission (2026-2030), and for up to five UIM Administrators.
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
