GENEVA (AP) — After having just four presidents in its first 97 years, the International Ski Federation voted for leadership term limits on Friday and adding more women to the ruling committee.
Presidents will be limited to three four-year terms after a near-unanimous vote by member federations to update the FIS legal statutes.
Johan Eliasch was elected in June to complete the last year of outgoing president Gian Franco Kasper’s sixth and final term.
Eliasch, who stepped down as CEO of the Head ski and tennis brand to lead FIS, is due for re-election in May. The new rule leaves him eligible to stay through 2034.
The 12-year limit brings skiing into line with international sports bodies such as FIFA and the International Olympic Committee.
Kasper’s 23 years as FIS president followed a 46-year run by another Swiss official, Marc Hodler. Kasper died in July five weeks after the election to replace him.
The FIS statutes approved on Friday also require a minimum of three women on the governing body’s council. There was just one woman on the 18-member committee before the June election, where former long-time secretary general Sarah Lewis was a candidate.
A vote to change the FIS name was narrowly defeated despite getting majority support.
A proposal to rebrand as the International Ski and Snowboard Federation fell short of a required two-thirds majority in a 66-49 vote.
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