Walter L. Bush Jr. Honored with Steinbrenner Leadership Award
2/12/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey, Athletics
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Walter L. Bush Jr., chairman of the board for USA Hockey, has been honored with the inaugural George M. Steinbrenner III Sport Leadership Award by the United States Olympic Foundation.
The Steinbrenner Award is based on the qualities of leadership, ethical conduct and dedicated responsibility reflected in long-standing contributions to sport.
"In a field of great nominees, Walter Bush emerged as a sportsman who has truly made a difference," said Bill Hybl, president of the United States Olympic Foundation.
Bush has served as secretary of the U.S. Olympic Foundation since 1997 and has been on the Board of Directors of the organization since 1993. In addition, he was a member of the Board of Directors of the United States Olympic Committee from 1989-1993 and again from 1996-2003. During the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, he received the Olympic Order from the International Olympic Committee, the highest honor in the Olympic movement.
In his third term as vice president of the International Ice Hockey Federation and 22nd year overall on the IIHF Council, Bush was instrumental in organizing the first IIHF Women's World Championship in 1990 and led the successful charge that made women's ice hockey a medal sport in the Olympic Winter Games beginning in 1998 in Nagano, Japan.
Bush has served in a leadership role at USA Hockey since 1959 when he was elected to the organization's Board of Directors. He served as president of USA Hockey for 17 years beginning in 1986 and has been in his current capacity as chairman of the board since 2003.
"Walter Bush has been the single most influential person in the development and evolution of the structure of amateur hockey in the United States," said Ron DeGregorio, president of USA Hockey. "He's been a leader in the Olympic movement and his passion for sport is evident each and every day. On behalf of the USA Hockey family, we couldn't be more pleased that Walter has received the first-ever Steinbrenner Award."
Bush began his involvement with hockey as a freshman at Dartmouth College, graduating in 1951, before moving to the national level in 1959 when he managed the U.S. Men's National Team at the IIHF World Championship. He later served as general manager of the 1964 Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team.
The president of the Minnesota Amateur Hockey Association for three years, Bush was owner and president of the minor league Minneapolis Bruins from 1963-65. He later led a group of businessmen in securing a National Hockey League franchise - the Minnesota North Stars - for the Twin Cities area. He served as the North Stars' first president from 1967-76 and later became chairman of the board.
Bush was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2000. He received the NHL's Lester Patrick Award in 1973 in recognition of his outstanding service to ice hockey in the United States. He was enshrined in the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1980 and, in 1989, was elected to the Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame. He currently serves as a governor and vice-chair for the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
Bush was a leading figure in establishing The USA Hockey Foundation in 1989. USA Hockey's national office in Colorado Springs, Colo., -- the Walter L. Bush Jr. Center -- is appropriately named after him.
Bush resides in Edina, Minn.
The Steinbrenner Award is based on the qualities of leadership, ethical conduct and dedicated responsibility reflected in long-standing contributions to sport.
"In a field of great nominees, Walter Bush emerged as a sportsman who has truly made a difference," said Bill Hybl, president of the United States Olympic Foundation.
Bush has served as secretary of the U.S. Olympic Foundation since 1997 and has been on the Board of Directors of the organization since 1993. In addition, he was a member of the Board of Directors of the United States Olympic Committee from 1989-1993 and again from 1996-2003. During the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, he received the Olympic Order from the International Olympic Committee, the highest honor in the Olympic movement.
In his third term as vice president of the International Ice Hockey Federation and 22nd year overall on the IIHF Council, Bush was instrumental in organizing the first IIHF Women's World Championship in 1990 and led the successful charge that made women's ice hockey a medal sport in the Olympic Winter Games beginning in 1998 in Nagano, Japan.
Bush has served in a leadership role at USA Hockey since 1959 when he was elected to the organization's Board of Directors. He served as president of USA Hockey for 17 years beginning in 1986 and has been in his current capacity as chairman of the board since 2003.
"Walter Bush has been the single most influential person in the development and evolution of the structure of amateur hockey in the United States," said Ron DeGregorio, president of USA Hockey. "He's been a leader in the Olympic movement and his passion for sport is evident each and every day. On behalf of the USA Hockey family, we couldn't be more pleased that Walter has received the first-ever Steinbrenner Award."
Bush began his involvement with hockey as a freshman at Dartmouth College, graduating in 1951, before moving to the national level in 1959 when he managed the U.S. Men's National Team at the IIHF World Championship. He later served as general manager of the 1964 Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team.
The president of the Minnesota Amateur Hockey Association for three years, Bush was owner and president of the minor league Minneapolis Bruins from 1963-65. He later led a group of businessmen in securing a National Hockey League franchise - the Minnesota North Stars - for the Twin Cities area. He served as the North Stars' first president from 1967-76 and later became chairman of the board.
Bush was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2000. He received the NHL's Lester Patrick Award in 1973 in recognition of his outstanding service to ice hockey in the United States. He was enshrined in the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1980 and, in 1989, was elected to the Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame. He currently serves as a governor and vice-chair for the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
Bush was a leading figure in establishing The USA Hockey Foundation in 1989. USA Hockey's national office in Colorado Springs, Colo., -- the Walter L. Bush Jr. Center -- is appropriately named after him.
Bush resides in Edina, Minn.
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