Ice Hockey UK General Secretary Andy French and Chairman Clifton Wrottesley have been appointed to roles with the IIHF.
Wrottesley will serve on the Finance Committee for a period of five years until 2026.
“It’s a great privilege for us personally to be considered for the roles and to be entrusted with representing our fellow international ice hockey associations,” said Wrottesley.
“But, more importantly, it’s great for Ice Hockey UK to have people who are able to be close to key decisions that will be made by IIHF.”
French will be part of the new Presidential Task Force Groups which will focus on special-assigned topics that fall outside committee mandates, but will instead focus on President Luc Tardif’s vision for the 2021-2026 council term and beyond.
One of the groups French will work with will be dedicated towards enhancing co-operation between the IIHF, its members, leagues and clubs within Europe.
French said: “It’s a great privilege to be asked to be part of this prestigious IIHF Presidential Task Force.
“I am very much looking forward to working with experts from the IIHF, professional leagues and fellow federations.
“It’s great to be part of the formation of the task force and we can now get started and work on the tasks ahead.”
The formation meeting took place on Thursday with 50 participants who joined via video conference or on-site in Zurich.
Clubs were represented through the Alliance of European Hockey Clubs, the top national leagues of the continent via Hockey Europe and the Champions Hockey League, the IIHF through several IIHF Council members and the General Secretary. Several Member National Associations from the top European hockey countries sent delegates to the meeting as well.
“We want more communication, better exchanges, knowledge transfer and closer collaboration between the groups,” said Tardif.
“Everybody was satisfied. There was a positive attitude and everybody went home with good feelings. All participants know that it’s not going to be simple, but everybody understands the importance of this task force group and is ready to contribute.”
The newly-formed group will meet again in the second half of March.
There will be more news to follow on further Presidential Task Force Groups, their composition and roles.