New ISF President Elected at the 2025 General Assembly
Apr. 8, Zlatibor, Serbia – During the ISF U15 Gymnasiade 2025 in Zlatibor, Serbia, the International School Sport Federation (ISF) held its annual General Assembly, welcoming representatives of ISF members attending in person or online.
The Assembly opened with three welcome speeches delivered by Mr. Youssef Belqasmi, ISF President; Mr. Zoran Gajić, Minister of Sports of Serbia; and Mr. Zeljko Tanaskovic, President of the Local Organising Committee.
Throughout the session, General Assembly reviewed and approved a number of key reports and updates:
- Report of the ISF President, Mr. Youssef Belqasmi
- Reports from Vice-Presidents and Continental Presidents
- Report of the ISF Executive Director and the ISF Sport Director
- The 2024 Financial Statements, Independent Auditor Report and Update on the 2025 Budget
- The 2024 Annual Accounts and Activity Report
- Presentation of the 2025-2026 ISF Events Calendar
The highlight of the Assembly was the election of the ISF President for the 2025–2026 mandate, conducted under the supervision of elected scrutineers. Two distinguished candidates stood for election: Mr. Zeljko Tanaskovic (Serbia) and Dr. Saqer Al Khalifa (Bahrain).
After both candidates presented their election statements, the attending members cast their votes through an online electronic voting system. Under the supervision of the scrutineers, the votes were counted and Mr. Zeljko Tanaskovic was elected as the new ISF President, receiving 55 out of 81 valid votes. Mr. Tanaskovic 's presidency runs until the next ISF General Elections which will take place in 2026.
A former elite volleyball player and captain of the Serbian national team, Mr. Tanaskovic earned an Olympic bronze medal and a World Championship silver medal during his athletic career. He currently serves as President of the Serbian School Sport Federation and the European School Sport Federation. As the ISF Continental President for Europe and a long-standing member of the ISF Executive Committee, Mr. Tanaskovic brings a unique blend of experience in both high-performance sport and school sport. Under his leadership, Serbia has hosted ten ISF events in recent years, including the first-ever ISF U15 Gymnasiade in 2021 and its third edition this year.
The newly elected ISF President expressed strong confidence in the year ahead, stating to ISF Media Partner Xinhua News Agency:"We have to give opportunity to all children. Only school teams participate in school competitions. We've lost our mission in many competitions," Zeljko said when he talked about his mission of "back to the school sport values" in his presentation."
The ISF continues its mission of empowering youth through sport and education. With the newly elected President, the Federation looks forward to building on its solid foundation of inclusive governance and collective leadership. The ISF's structure ensures transparent and democratic decision-making, with the General Assembly as the highest authority, and both the Management Committee and Executive Committee playing vital roles in shaping the organisation's strategic direction.
As the ISF moves into this next chapter, it remains committed to supporting its members and expanding opportunities for students across the globe through international school sport events and educational programmes.
