Berlin – Franz Reindl voted for a long time. “Yes, of course, postal voting,” says the President of the German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB) in an interview with the sports information service. Because on Sunday the 66-year-old is not at home in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, but in St. Petersburg – and then possibly one of the most powerful men in world ice hockey. When he sees the first projections of the federal election on the television in the hotel, his “big game” is over: On Saturday morning, the successor to long-time President Rene Fasel will be elected at the semi-annual congress of the world association IIHF. And Reindl has – after months of campaigning – “a very good feeling, but feeling doesn’t vote”.
The former national player, bronze medalist at the 1976 Olympics, has not only shaped German ice hockey like no other – as a multifunctional, who in between even stood on the gang himself. First as a contender in a long dispute that plunged the sport into a deep crisis, then as an intermediary who bundled all forces and triggered a remarkable sporting upswing with Olympic silver 2018 and the advance of the national team among the top nations.
Reindl has also built up an international network that should lead him to the top after a total of 23 years in various offices in the world association. The former striker, who is not entirely undisputed in Germany because of his numerous posts, does not want to “keep going” in the IIHF and “leave no stone unturned” in the analysis. He certainly has his work as DEB President since 2014 in mind as a blueprint. How he brought the divided federation and the split off German Ice Hockey League (DEL) back together and, with the “Powerplay26” concept, urged increased joint efforts for the youth work, one could also “transfer to world ice hockey”.
In other words: The NHL and the major European leagues should be more closely involved. A “long-term strategy” with an “international calendar that spans a decade” aims to end the constant discussions about NHL participation in the Olympics and make the sport more global. But Reindl also wants – unlike some of his four opponents – to hold on to the status quo when it comes to the annual World Cup that fills the world federation’s coffers. “It is the train that all members ride on. That is inviolable, ”he emphasizes.