Neven Ilic, left, José Joaquín Puello, centre, and Carlos Nuzman will each have 10 minutes to showcase their respective bids ©Twitter

Chile's Neven Ilic, Brazil's Carlos Nuzman and Dominican Republic's José Joaquín Puello will each have 10 minutes to formally present their respective bids for the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) Presidency in tomorrow's General Assembly.

This was decided following a meeting today between the three candidates and the freshly appointed PASO Election Committee.

Canada's PASO Legislative Committee President Michael Chambers is chairing a three-man panel also featuring Dominica Olympic Committee President Felix Wilson and Colombia Olympic Committee counterpart Baltazar Medina.

Trinidad and Tobago's Brian Lewis and Paraguay's Camilo Pérez López Moreira were originally nominated for inclusion on the panel but were each disqualified as they are also running for other Executive Committee positions.

It comes at the end of a frantic final day of lobby as the PASO General Assembly began here.

The contest is still being fiercely fought and is considered to be very tight between the three.

Puello is still thought most likely to gain the most votes in the first round, although it is unclear whether he has a realistic chance of gaining the required majority of 26.

If no candidate reaches a first round majority, the lowest one will be eliminated and the remaining two will progress into a second round.

Both Nuzman and Ilic fancy their chances of success in the second round if they can reach it. 

Michael Chambers will act as chair of the PASO Election Committee tomorrow ©Getty Images
Michael Chambers will act as chair of the PASO Election Committee tomorrow ©Getty Images

There are several factors which will prove key.

This includes to what extent the Caribbean region stays united around Puello and in which direction Canada and United States cast their ballots.

Some believe that the decision to permit speeches could favour Ilic after a charismatic performance today showcasing Santiago's bid for the 2023 Pan American Games.

Elections for the new President to replace Julio Maglione will take place tomorrow morning and will be done by secret ballot.

It will be followed by elections for three vice-presidents and then 12 ordinary Executive Committee positions.

Two more ballots may be cast to decide the order of preference between the three vice-presidents.

One area of intrigue concerns the Group One region of PASO members to so far find a female candidate to stand among their nominees.

This is a requirement under the PASO statutes.

No candidate had been confirmed this evening and the region has until 9am tomorrow to submit a proposal.

If this does not happen, it is possible nominations could be taken from the floor during the meeting.