Bunny Ahearne | |
|---|---|
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| Born | John Francis Ahearne (1900-11-19)19 November 1900 Kinnagh, County Wexford, Ireland |
| Died | 11 April 1985(1985-04-11) (aged 84) Toddington, Gloucestershire, England |
| Occupation | Travel agent |
| Known for | International Ice Hockey Federation andBritish Ice Hockey Association executive |
| Awards | Hockey Hall of Fame British Ice Hockey Hall of Fame IIHF Hall of Fame |
John Francis "Bunny"Ahearne (19 November 1900 – 11 April 1985) was a Britishice hockey administrator and businessman. He served rotating terms as president and vice-president of theInternational Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) from 1951 to 1975, and was the secretary of theBritish Ice Hockey Association from 1934 to 1971, and later its president until 1982. He began in hockey by managing the lastGreat Britain team to win a gold medal at theWinter Olympic Games, before moving to the international stage. He implemented business reforms at the IIHF, oversaw the growth of ice hockey to new countries, and expanded theIce Hockey World Championships. He was inducted into both theHockey Hall of Fame and theBritish Ice Hockey Hall of Fame during his lifetime and was posthumously inducted into theIIHF Hall of Fame.
Ahearne was born on 19 November 1900, inKinnagh, County Wexford, Ireland.[1] He spent the majority of his life residing in England working as atravel agent, and never played ice hockey.[2]
Ahearne was secretary of theBritish Ice Hockey Association (BIHA) from 1934 to 1971, and served as the association's president from 1971 to 1982.[3] During this time he was also theUnited Kingdom's delegate to meetings of theInternational Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).[2][4] During this time he hiredPat Marsh as his secretary, who later took over as the BIHA secretary when Ahearne became president.[5]
Ahearne was the head coach of theGreat Britain ice hockey team which won a bronze medal at the1935 Ice Hockey World Championships.[3] He continued working on the business management of the team for another three years,[3] and appointedPercy Nicklin to take over the coaching duties.[6]
Prior to Ahearne's involvement in the national team, it was composed of current and former army officers. He decreed that the national team needed to play at least four British-born players, and augmented the roster with imports.[6] He built a powerful British team by recruiting players living in Canada who obtained British citizenship under theBritish nationality law, through ancestral linkages to the United Kingdom.[7] Ahearne went to Canada in 1935 with team captainCarl Erhardt to find the best available players. TheCanadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) reluctantly agreed to allow permission for any player wishing to transfer, as long as the BIHA would only use such players who were properly transferred.[6]
The combined efforts of Ahearne, Nicklin, and Erhardt went on to win an Olympic gold medal and two silver medals for Great Britain in the next three years. The team earned the gold medal inice hockey at the 1936 Winter Olympics hosted inGarmisch-Partenkirchen, which also determined the 1936 European Championship and the 1936 World Championship.[3] Great Britain later won silver at both the1937 Ice Hockey World Championships and the1938 Ice Hockey World Championships, and won the European championship both times.[3]
Ahearne was part of the IIHF delegation who travelled to North America in 1947 to convince the CAHA and theAmateur Hockey Association of the United States (AHAUS) to resume being active members.[4] He later welcomed theSoviet Union Ice Hockey Federation to IIHF membership in 1952.[4] He served as the CAHA's representative in Europe until 1952, and booked European tours and accommodations for theCanada men's national ice hockey team. He resigned after an altercation with CAHA presidentDoug Grimston and disagreements over the handling of a tour for theEdmonton Mercurys.[8]
Ahearne served as vice-president of the IIHF from 1951 to 1957, then as president from 1957 to 1960, then as vice-president again from 1960 to 1963, returned to the presidency from 1963 to 1966, returned to vice-presidency from 1966 to 1969, and then president again from 1969 to 1975.[3] The alternating terms as president and vice-president arose from the agreement where the CAHA and AHAUS rejoined the IIHF with the promise of rotating the top position between Europe and North America.[9] The other IIHF presidents during that time wereRobert Lebel from Canada (1960 to 1963),[10] andWilliam Thayer Tutt from the United States (1966 to 1969).[11]
During his time with the IIHF, Ahearne is credited with improving its finances, cooperating with theInternational Olympic Committee (IOC), and helping to develop and introduce hockey to new countries.[4] He also transformed theIce Hockey World Championships into a well-known annual tournament,[2] and implemented the splitting of the event into different tiers of competition.[4] He also oversaw the foundation of both theIIHF European Junior Championships and theIzvestia Cup in 1967.[4] He introduced advertisements on the side boards of hockey rinks during the World Championships, and securedbroadcasting rights for international matches.[2][7] He is also credited for redistributing funds andprofit sharing from these events to IIHF members for development.[7]
In 1969, the IIHF voted to allow limited use of former professional players at international competitions. The decision was later challenged by the Soviet Union, claiming that Canada would abuse the change at the upcoming1970 World Ice Hockey Championships. When the IOC did not support the change, Ahearne was caught in the middle and later changed his position. The CAHA responded by withdrawing from international play until 1977.[2][4] This dispute led to the negotiation of the 1972Summit Series, of which Ahearne was one of the four signatories who approved the event on 18 April 1972, along withFred Page,Joe Kryczka, andAndrey Starovoytov.[12] He retired as IIHF president in 1975, and was replaced byGünther Sabetzki.[7]
Ahearne operated Blue Riband Travel from offices onMayfair.[1] He was married to Betty, and had two sons.[13] He died on 11 April 1985, at his home inToddington, Gloucestershire, due to heart failure.[1][2][7]Gord Renwick attended the funeral on behalf of Canada, and said that despite their disagreements, Ahearne was respected by Canadian officials for his business sense.[7]
Ahearne receivedOntario Hockey Association Gold Stick Award in 1948,[14] and the AHAUS citation award in 1949.[15] He was named an honorary president of the IIHF in 1975.[7] He was inducted into theHockey Hall of Fame in 1977, theBritish Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 1987, and posthumously inducted intoIIHF Hall of Fame in 1997.[1][3] He also received the Cross of Finland, the Order of Yugoslavia, and the Gold Cross of Austria.[1] He was the namesake of theAhearne Cup that began in 1952 in Sweden, from the combined efforts ofDjurgårdens IF Hockey and theDagens Nyheter newspaper.[16]
| Preceded by | President of theIIHF 1957–1960 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President of the IIHF 1963–1966 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President of the IIHF 1969–1975 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President of theBIHA 1971–1982 | Succeeded by |