Baumann Leaves Big Shoes to Fill

(ATR) Patrick Baumann’s untimely death at the Youth Olympics will have a huge impact across the Olympic world.

Tributes continue to pour in for one of the smartest operators in the sports movement, who died from a heart attack Oct. 13 at the Urban Park in Buenos Aires. These are big shoes to fill for the IOC and numerous sports governing bodies of which he was a key member.

Variously lauded as a "visionary" and a "game changer", Baumann’s star has been in the ascendancy at the IOC since he became a member in 2007 – but especially in the past two years.

A close ally of president Thomas Bach, who he was tipped to succeed when his mandate expires, Baumann was a member of several Olympic evaluation commissions before being appointed to oversee the race for the 2024 Olympics between Paris and Los Angeles.

After the dual award in Lima last year, Baumann was named vice-chair of the IOC coordination commission for Paris 2024 and chair of the Los Angeles 2028 panel, charged with helping the two cities to work closely on their Olympic plans for mutual benefit.

Bach and the International Basketball Federation underscored how much Baumann will be missed by the international sports movement in emotional speeches at a memorial service at the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires on Sunday.

Bach described him as "a man of boundless energy and unbridled enthusiasm. Everyone of us remembers how he inspired us all with his positive outlook, with his kind-hearted smile, with his zest for life and with his passion for sport".

The IOC chief may look to promote a woman to chair the IOC’s watchdogs for the 2024 and 2028 Olympics. Marisol Casado or rising IOC star Kirsty Coventry may be in the frame.

FIBA will also struggle to replace Baumann, an influential innovator as secretary general of the federation since 2002. President Horacio Muratore heaped praise on his qualities as a sports administrator at the service, saying Baumann’s "vision and enthusiasm drove FIBA forward in quantum leaps.

"He was not afraid to "shake the tree", as he often liked to say. For FIBA, Patrick was a true game changer," the FIBA chief said.

One of Baumann’s lasting legacies will be the 3x3 ‘urban’ basketball format he helped launch and promote globally. After proving a hit at the Youth Olympics, it makes its full Olympic debut at the Tokyo 2020 Games.

The Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) and SportAccord Convention, which he served as president since 2016, also find themselves looking for a worthy successor.

Baumann’s death follows that of former SportAccord president Hein Verbruggen, who died in June 2017.

The Swiss lawyer was credited with steadying the GAISF ship after it hit rocky waters under Marius Vizer’s brief but controversial leadership, following his outspoken attack on the IOC in 2015.

Speaking at SportAccord Convention in Bangkok in April, Baumann said GAISF’s relations with the IOC were now firmly back on track. He said he was pleased at the unity shown by federation members after a period of instability.

Under his leadership of the umbrella federations body and convention, Baumann and colleagues were considering the idea of staging regional conventions. Interest had already been expressed by countries in Asia and Central and South America.

GAISF objectives for 2018-2019 included improving the governance of federations, working on membership and trying to provide more services for the IFs.

Some of these projects may now be delayed or put on hold.

A leadership reshuffle at GAISF and SportAccord Convention is certain to take place as both bodies prepare for the 2019 SportAccord in Gold Coast, Australia from May 5 to 10.

It’s possible that interim positions could be appointed to pave the way for successors to Baumann, with a vote coming at the GAISF and convention general assemblies at the Gold Coast meeting. Trusted hand Stephan Fox might be the safest pair of hands as the organizations come to terms with the loss of their leader.

In 2017, the GAISF general assembly voted to approve a rotation of the presidency for two-year terms among its respective organizations - ARISF, AIOWF, AIMS and ASOIF.

Baumann was due to step aside in 2020. But his sudden death means Raffaele Chiulli, president of the Association of IOC Recognised International Sport Federations, may be chosen a year early to head up GAISF.

The repercussions of Baumann’s death are being felt elsewhere in Olympic circles.

With the clock ticking down to the Lausanne 2020 Winter Youth Olympics, the IOC and YOG organising committee now have the difficult task of finding a suitable president to deliver on the Games mission he helped conceive.

The Association of Summer Olympic International Federations will elect a replacement for Baumann on its ASOIF Council at its Gold Coast general assembly.

The World Anti-Doping Agency also needs to quickly fill his seat on the executive committee and foundation board as they grapple with the global anti-doping crisis in the fallout from the Russian scandal.

Reported by Mark Bisson

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