Kim Jae-youl succeeds Jan Dijkema as chairman of the International Skating Federation (ISU). The South Korean received the most votes at the federation’s congress in Phuket, Thailand.
In advance, the 77-year-old Dijkema had already announced that he did not want to extend his presidency. He has been chairman of the federation since 2016 and was the third chairman from the Netherlands after Pim Mulier (1892-1895) and Gerrit van Laer (1937-1945).
Kim, 53, won 77 of the 119 votes, beating the other three candidates. In addition to the South Korean, American Patricia St. Peter, Finnish Susanna Rahkamo and Serb Slobodan Delic had run for election.
“I am very surprised by your overwhelming support,” Kim said in his speech. “I want to be a president for all countries, no matter how big they are and what region they come from. We are a family, together we can grow our sport.”
Kim is the first ISU head to come from outside Europe since the organization was founded in 1892. He has been one of ten members of the ISU Council, the federation’s executive body, since 2016.
Previously, Kim was chairman of the South Korean Speed Skating Federation (from 2011 to 2016) and was involved in the organizing committee of the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang. Four years earlier, he headed the South Korean delegation to the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi.
Jan Dijkema has been chairman of the ISU since 2016.
Jan Dijkema has been chairman of the ISU since 2016. Photo: Getty Images