It was a tight race to the finish line, but in the end, the International Baseball Federation has elected American Harvey Schiller over Cuban Reynaldo Gonzalez to become the new President of the IBAF.
The election was held in Beijing, in part to help increase the sports profile in the host city of the 2008 Olympics. Of the 115 eligible voters, 88 ballots were cast and in a vote of 58-29 with one ballot being spoiled, Mr. Schiller was declared the winner.
Mr. Schiller replaces Aldo Notari of Italy, who died last year after 13 years in office. Tom Peng of Taiwan has been the interim president since Mr. Notari’s death. Mr. Schiller will serve out the remainder of Mr. Notari’s term, which ends after the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
Mr. Schiller is a former secretary general of the United States Olympic Committee and he currently heads a risk management company in New York. He was a U.S. Air Force pilot and has held other high-ranking sports and business positions. He was chairman and CEO of YankeeNets, which once owned the New York Yankees, New Jersey Nets and New Jersey Devils, and a former president of Turner Sports.
The new IBAF President said his main objective will be to get Baseball back in the official Olympic program, and that the entire Baseball family must work together to achieve this goal.
