Following World War II, Paulen became a sports official, becoming president of the IAAF (then International Amateur Athletic Federation), serving from 1976 to 1981.

[5] Stepping down from his athletic career in 1931, Paulen also participated in the Monte Carlo Rally eight times and once competed in the Dutch TT MotoGP event.

[5] When Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands in May 1940, Paulen joined the Nederlandsche Unie, an organisation that strived for co-operation with the German occupier.

Other participants for the Nederlandse Unie during these talks were Jan de Quay, after the war minister-president, Louis Einthoven, former head of the Rotterdam police and afterwar director of the BVD (secret service) and Hans Linthorst Homan, commissioner of the Queen in the province Groningen.

[8] The Order is the highest and oldest military honour of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, bestowed for "performing excellent acts of Bravery, Leadership and Loyalty in battle".

Controversy arose in the pole vault, when the new Cata-Pole, used by defending champion American Bob Seagren and Sweden's Kjell Isaksson, was declared to be illegal, by the IAAF, on 25 July.

Seagren and Isaksson believed this gave other athletes, like the eventual gold medalist, Wolfgang Nordwig, an unfair advantage.

Isaksson, who had lost the world record to Seagren only two months earlier, did not clear a height in the qualifying round and was eliminated, leaving the stadium in disgust afterwards.