Liechtenstein lawyer Alexander Ospelt (58) was elected as the new president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) at the 57th congress of that body held in Belgrade.
Ospelt defeated the current FIS president Johann Eliasch by only one vote, 65-64, and thus received a four-year mandate to lead the federation.
The campaign against the current president of the FIS, a billionaire and owner of sports equipment Head, was led by major skiing powers in Europe and North America, with the support of female skiers, including Mikaela Shiffrin. Eliasch also loses his membership in the International Olympic Committee.
Congress in Belgrade it started with tensionsfirst the agenda was changed with 88 percent of votes to put the presidential election as the first item on the agenda, and then with 60 percent of the votes it was decided to use paper ballots instead of electronic voting, which reflected some distrust in the FIS administration.
Eliasch held the position of president of the FIS for five years, which was marked constant conflicts with ski associationsincluding Austria and Switzerland, over issues such as its management and spending of the ski organization’s financial reserves.
With dual citizenship of Sweden and Great Britain, he did not receive the support of either of those federations for re-election, but he fulfilled FIS rules by obtaining a passport and Georgia’s nomination. Ospelt was supported by, among others, Austria, Norway, Italy, Switzerland, Canada and the USA.
Eliasch left the head of the FIS with accusations against the IOC
It has been my great privilege to serve you. I’ve always said that this will be a win-win situation; either I will get my life back or I will win the election – anyway, I’m very happyEliasch said, claiming that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) orchestrated his dismissal. I have heard from many that the IOC tried to influence the outcome of the election. We have to strongly oppose it because we are an independent organization.
Eliasch assumed the presidency in June 2021, succeeding Gian Franco Kasper.
He was re-elected unopposed in 2022 under controversial circumstances. Since then, the FIS president has been embroiled in numerous disputes with major federations such as the Austrian Ski Association (ÖSV).
According to FIS rules, Ospelt officially becomes president the day after the election.
(Hina | Photo: X)
