Patrick Baumann led the panel evaluating the 2024 Olympics bids from Paris and Los Angeles.getty images
PATRICK BAUMANN, the secretary general of FIBA who was seen as a potential IOC president, died at the Youth Olympics, according to the AP. He was 51. Baumann "unexpectedly succumbed to a heart attack" in Buenos Aires despite getting immediate medical help, FIBA said Sunday in a statement. FIBA said, "Basketball has lost a leader, an advocate and a friend and our thoughts are with Patrick's wife and two children at this tragic time." Baumann was FIBA's top administrator for 15 years, and an IOC committee member since '07. IOC President THOMAS BACH said, "We can hardly believe this terrible news. We lose a young and sympathetic leader full of hope who was standing for the future of sport. Our thoughts are with his wife, his children and his family." A lawyer from Switzerland, Baumann had taken an "increasingly important role in Olympic circles." He led an IOC panel evaluating the Paris and L.A. bids for the 2024 Olympics, and then "took charge" of overseeing preparations for the 2028 L.A. Olympics (AP, 10/14). The AFP reported a former basketball player, coach and referee, Baumann was FIBA's deputy secretary general from '95 until '02, when he was "unanimously appointed" secretary general by the FIBA Central Board. FIBA President HORACIO MURATORE said, "Under his leadership, FIBA moved forward by leaps and bounds, with the organization modernizing itself to the extend of becoming a model which fellow international federations followed." Muratore credited Baumann with launching 3x3, basketball's urban discipline which became a part of the sport's program at the Olympics (AFP, 1/14). In a statement, NBA Commissioner ADAM SILVER said, "Nobody was more dedicated to the growth of basketball than Patrick. He loved the game and recognized its power to transform people's lives. He was also a dear friend and colleague who I attended countless games and events with over the past 20 years. The NBA family mourns the loss of Patrick and we send our heartfelt condolences to his wife Patricia, his children Bianca and Paul, and his many friends in the basketball and Olympic communities" (NBA). WADA President CRAIG REEDIE said, "He was a man of great integrity and an outstanding young sports administrator with a bright future. Patrick was much admired and respected by all, including by his fellow members on WADA's Executive Committee and Foundation Board. I wish to recognize his immense contribution to sport and commitment to anti-doping. It is, without question, a great loss to these global communities" (WADA).
