Lehmann: “We don’t want war”

The general ski public is not familiar with it. And yet everyone is currently talking about her in Crans-Montana: Caroline Kuyper. The 48-year-old from French-speaking Switzerland with Dutch roots recently resigned her position as CEO of the 2027 World Cup after just two months. Compared to “Le Nouvelliste”, she spoke of “disturbances in management” and an “imbalance in governance”. stop gibberish.

If you ask around Crans-Montana, the words are clear. There were fierce disagreements between Kuyper and Swiss-Ski, which is in charge of the 2027 World Cup. President Urs Lehmann replies: “Caroline is a good person with great skills. The longer we worked, the more we realized that our philosophies are different. That’s a shame, but it can happen. We don’t want war, we look ahead.”

Okay boss: “I was really angry!”

Lehmann does not confirm the rumor that Kuyper prevented her dismissal by resigning. On the contrary: “We planned to sit down with her on Sunday. We were very surprised that it didn’t come to that and that she immediately approached the media.” It is quite possible that Kuyper, who used to work in important positions at Nestlé and Philip Morris, didn’t get along with the sports environment, where everything is more down-to-earth. .

Marius Robyr, the head of the OC for the World Cup races in Crans-Montana, was not only surprised at the timing of Kuyper’s resignation, but also shocked. “I was really angry! Because this happened just before our World Cup weekend, where so many people work with passion. That caused us a lot of problems.”

Are you now afraid of image damage for the 2027 World Cup? Lehmann thinks not. “Better to end the relationship now than to continue for another year or two, even if it doesn’t suit you.” Means: Better to have an ending with horror than a horror without an end.

Defago as successor?

Swiss-Ski has contacted several possible successors to Kuyper, including Didier Defago. “He is a valid candidate, speaks the language of the athletes, is the president of the mountain railways in Valais and an integration figure for the whole region.” But is the 2010 Olympic champion, who also works as a track builder, also an administrative man? Maybe not. So it would be possible to have a double CEO – with Defago and another person. One thing is certain: the 2027 World Cup is already casting its shadow.

Source : Blick