René Fasel | |
|---|---|
 Fasel in 2016 | |
| Born | (1950-02-06)6 February 1950 (age 75) Fribourg, Switzerland |
| Education | Doctor of Dental Surgery |
| Occupation | Ice hockey administrator |
| Known for | International Ice Hockey Federation president,International Olympic Committee executive,Swiss Ice Hockey Federation president |
| Honors |
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René Fasel (born 6 February 1950) is a Swiss-Russian retired ice hockey administrator. He served as president of theInternational Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) from 1994 to 2021. He started his ice hockey career as a player forHC Fribourg-Gottéron, in 1960, and became a referee in 1972. He became president of theSwiss Ice Hockey Federation in 1985, then was elected president of theInternational Ice Hockey Federation in 1994. He also became anInternational Olympic Committee member and was elected to its executive board. Fasel was inducted into theIIHF Hall of Fame in 2021.
Born inFribourg,Switzerland, Fasel started his playing career with theSwiss league teamHC Fribourg-Gottéron in 1960.[2] He remained with the team until 1972 and retired to become a referee. He remained a referee until 1982 and officiated 37 international matches.[3] In 1982 he became the Chairman of the Swiss Ice Hockey League referees' commission.[2] In 1985, he became president of theSchweizerischer Eishockeyverband, Switzerland's governing body for ice hockey. He was elected to the IIHF council the following year and served as head of the Referee and the Marketing Committees.[3]
In June 1994, Fasel was elected the President of the IIHF, succeedingGünther Sabetzki, winning the election by three votes overKai Hietarinta of Finland.[4] He served four consecutive terms as president, with his final term starting in May 2008 when he was unopposed in his re-election attempt.[5] He sought a stronger relationship with theNational Hockey League (NHL), the major professional ice hockey league ofNorth America. In March 1995, he helped negotiate an agreement so that NHL players could compete at the1998 Winter Olympics inNagano, Japan.[6] He vowed to "work day and night" to help negotiate an agreement that will see NHL players participate in the2014 Winter Olympics.[7] He is againstfighting in ice hockey, describing it as "Neanderthal behavior".[8]
He became a member of the Swiss Olympic Association in 1992, and amember of theInternational Olympic Committee in 1995. He was the first representative of ice hockey.[3] As an IOC member, he was chairman of theAssociation of International Olympic Winter Sports Federations (AIOWF), and chairman of the Coordination Commission for the2010 Winter Olympics.[2] In May 2008, Fasel was nominated to replaceOttavio Cinquanta as the winter sports representative on the IOC's executive board.[9] He was named to the board on 7 August at the 120thIOC Session held before the2008 Summer Olympics and served an eight-year term until 2016, when replaced byGian-Franco Kasper.[10]
In a conflict of interest, Fasel assisted a friend in securing a contract for overseeing the IIHF's television and marketing rights. In April 2010, IOC only reprimanded Fasel, a lighter sentence than in other similar cases.[11]
Fasel spoke at theWorld Hockey Summit in 2010, and discussed theNational Hockey League (NHL) presence in Europe and inice hockey at the Olympic Games, and was defensive of European hockey.[12] He was against NHL expansion plans into Europe, and envisioned a European professional league, where the champion would play theStanley Cup winner for a world title.[13] He sought to keep NHL participation at the Winter Olympics due to its profitability and exposure for international hockey.[12]
Fasel was awarded theOrder of Friendship by Russian presidentDmitry Medvedev in 2011.[14]
In January 2021, Fasel was criticized for meeting withAlexander Lukashenko regarding the2021 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships during the2020–2021 Belarusian protests.[15] Fasel replied that the meeting was solely to discuss the World Championships, and that they had known each other from playing ice hockey together.[16]
Fasel stepped down as IIHF president on 25 September 2021, and was inducted into theIIHF Hall of Fame on the same day.[17][18] He was succeeded as IIHF president byFrench Ice Hockey Federation president,Luc Tardif.[19][20] He is still one of the life and honorary presidents of IIHF.[21][22]
In March 2022, Fasel denied a report that he signed a contract to be an advisor to theKontinental Hockey League (KHL). He instead stated that he has given advice to the league when he has been asked.[23] When the IIHF suspended the Russian and Belarusian hockey federations until further notice due to the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Fasel was quoted in Russian media as saying it was a "sad moment in IIHF history", and that "Even in such a tense situation as today, sport must carry the message of peace and united people".[24] TheAssociated Press reported that Fasel had been publicly friendly withVladimir Putin, and that the Russian Hockey Federation instructed the KHL to distribute material supporting the invasion. The IIHF subsequently called for an independent ethics investigation into the actions of Fasel and the Russian Hockey Federation, and stated that former IIHF presidents were bound to a moral code of conduct.[24]
Fasel is married and has four children. He attended theUniversity of Fribourg andUniversity of Bern and became aDoctor of Dental Surgery in 1977.[2] In 1997, the IOC commissioned him to conduct a study of dental treatment of Olympic athletes.[3] The report, "Sports Dentistry and the Olympic Games", was published in 2005.[25] On 26 July 2012 Fasel was part of the2012 Summer Olympics torch relay inLondon.[26]
Fasel acquired Russian citizenship in 2023, and purchased a 54 per cent stake in Alma Holding, which produces apples.[27]
| Preceded by | President of theIIHF 1994–2021 | Succeeded by |