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Johan Eliasch

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Johan Eliasch
BornFebruary 1962 (age 62)
Djursholm, Sweden
NationalitySwedish
British
Alma materStockholm University
Royal Institute of Technology
Occupation(s)Industrialist, Financier and Environmentalist
TitlePresident, International Ski Federation (FIS)
PredecessorGian-Franco Kasper
Board member ofEquity Partners (Chairman)
London Films (Chairman)
Saatchi Gallery (Chairman)
Cool Earth (Chairman)
Global Strategy Forum (President)
Member of the IOC
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1988; div. 2006)​
Children2
Websiteofficial website

Johan Eliasch (born February 1962) is a Swedish-British businessman, investor, and environmentalist.[1] He was the chief executive of Head, a sporting goods company, from 1995 to 2021, and is now its chairman. In 2006, he co-founded Cool Earth, a charity dedicated to rainforest conservation.[2] Under Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Eliasch served as the Prime Minister's special representative for deforestation and clean energy. Since June 2021, he is the president of the International Ski Federation (FIS).[3] Since July 24, 2024 he is a member of the International Olympic Committee.

Early life

Johan Eliasch was born in February 1962,[4] in Djursholm, Sweden.[5] He is the grandson of G. A. Svensson, a leading Swedish industrialist.[6] He graduated in Stockholm with a Master of Science from the Royal Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Stockholm University. Eliasch served in a specialist unit at the Life-Guard Dragoons, K1, Stockholm, Sweden (1980-81.)[7][8]

He was married to Amanda Eliasch, a photographer and filmmaker, from 1988 to 2006; they have two sons.[9] Their son Charles Eliasch is an opera singer.[10]

Career

Eliasch began his career in turning around companies in 1985, when he joined the London-based private equity firm Tufton Group.[6] In 1991, he established his own private investment group, Equity Partners.[6]

In 1995, Eliasch took over Head Tyrolia Mares,[6] the sporting goods company now known as Head; he was the Chief Executive Officer of Head from 1995 to 2021.[11]

In June 2021, Eliasch was elected as president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) at the 52nd International Ski Congress, succeeding Gian-Franco Kasper, who had run the organisation for 23 years.[12] Eliasch stepped down as CEO of Head after his election.[11] At the 53rd International Ski Congress in May 2022, Eliasch ran unopposed and was re-elected as FIS president through 2026 but some delegates called the elections undemocratic as it was not possible to vote against him; as a result 15 national associations walked out during his election and 40% of the delegates abstained.[13][14][better source needed]

He is chairman of Equity Partners,[6] and on the board of directors of Aman Resorts[15] and Longleat.[7] He is the chairman of the Saatchi Gallery.[16]

He was an advisory board member of the Shimon Peres Peace Centre, World Peace Foundation, the Centre for Social Justice, Societe du Louvre and the British Olympic Association, a member of the Mayor of London's (Boris Johnson), Jerusalem's and Rome's International Business Advisory Councils.[7] He was chairman of Starr Managing Agents, Investcorp Europe[17] and the Aman Resorts Group.[18] He was a director of London Films Productions Limited from August 2016 to January 2017.[19]

The Sunday Times Rich List puts him in number 46 of UK's richest in 2024 with a net worth estimated at £4 billion.[20]

In September 2024, he was announced as one of seven candidates in the running to succeed Thomas Bach as International Olympic Committee president.[21]

Environmental causes

In 2005, Eliasch created the Rainforest Trust and purchased for preservation purposes a 400,000-acre (1,600 km2) rainforest area in the heart of the Amazon rainforest near the Madeira River.[22] He then reportedly closed down the rainforest logging operations in that area.[23] In June 2008, the Brazilian and international media reported that the company Gethal, owned by Eliasch, had been issued a fine of R$450 million for alleged illegal deforestation in the Amazon region by IBAMA (Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources).[24][25] The investigation ended in 2013, Eliasch was not fined, and the case was dropped.[26] In a press release note, Gethal stated that "the logging activity of Gethal Amazonas S/A had been out under the Forest Steward Council (FSC) guidelines, a certification that was obtained in 2000".[27]

In 2006, he co-founded Cool Earth,[28] a charity he co-chairs, which sponsors local NGOs to conserve endangered rainforest and has over 120,000 registered members.

In 2007 he was commissioned by HM Government to undertake an independent review on the role of international finance mechanisms to preserve the global forests in tackling climate change, The Eliasch Review, which was launched in October 2008.[29][30] The Eliasch Review has served as a guideline for REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) as part of the international climate change convention. [31]

Under Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Eliasch served as the Prime Minister's special representative for deforestation and clean energy.[32]

Eliasch is currently a director of the Foundation for Renewable Energy and Environment, a non-profit, international organisation,[33] and an advisory board member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Polar Regions, Brasilinvest.[7][34] He is an advisory board member of the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative[35] and previously served on the International Advisory Board of the Stockholm Resilience Centre.[36]

He chaired the 2021-22 HM Treasury net zero review technology and innovation advisory group,[17][37] RUSI's Food, Energy and Water security program, and was a member of the DEFRA Council for Sustainable Business.[17]

Political activity

Since 1997, Eliasch has served the Conservative Party in different roles, including as Deputy Treasurer, Advisor to the Leader and Advisor to the Shadow Foreign Secretary. He was appointed as a non-political special representative of Prime Minister Gordon Brown on deforestation and clean energy.[38] [39] Eliasch was a member of the Austrian president's delegation of State for Trade and Industry (1996-2006). He was chairman of the Young Conservatives Party in Djursholm, Sweden, from 1979–1982.[40]

In 2006, Eliasch co-founded the Global Strategy Forum with Rt Hon Michael Ancram,[41] and became the foundation's first president.[42]

Friendship with Prince Andrew

Eliasch became friends with Prince Andrew, Duke of York, after he organised a charity tennis match at Buckingham Palace between John McEnroe and Björn Borg. Later, the Duke visited Eliasch at his French residence.[43] In 2019, The Times reported that in 2002 the Duke used the pseudonym Andrew Inverness to set up a company with Eliasch.[44] They named the company Naples Gold.[45] In 2021, speaking to the New York Times about the Duke's friendship with the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, Eliasch claimed that, "Anybody who knows the Duke well knows that he is intensely loyal to his friends and sometimes that loyalty is not in his best interest, and that is what happened here."[46] On 9th March 2011, The Guardian newspaper had to publish an apology about an article that contained inaccurate details regarding the 2000 vacation. The article wrongly stated that Johan Eliasch and Prince Andrew had been accompanied by topless models during this holiday, a claim that was later acknowledged as false. The newspaper's apology also made amends for the fact that they stated the pair were spotted on a catamaran when in fact they were aboard a single-hulled vessel and the models were clothed. The Guardian expressed regret over the misinformation in the initial report and apologised to both Johan Eliasch and Prince Andrew for any distress or inconvenience caused by the inaccuracies in the previously published article.[47]

References

  1. ^ Eliasch, Johan. "About". Johan Eliasch. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  2. ^ Clarke, David. "UK's Brown names opposition donor as green adviser". Reuters. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  3. ^ "FIS Presidents". www.fis-ski.com. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  4. ^ "Johan ELIASCH - Personal Appointments (free information from Companies House)". Beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  5. ^ Opitz, Caspar (10 May 2006). "Svensk räddar skog för 100 miljoner". DN.SE. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  6. ^ a b c d e Wherry, Rob (20 March 2000). "Head's up". Forbes. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  7. ^ a b c d "Johan Eliasch". cps.org.uk. Centre for Policy Research. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  8. ^ Taylor, Matthew; White, Michael (2 September 2007). "Big Tory donor quits citing party's move to the right". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  9. ^ "All Tamara's parties". the Guardian. 8 February 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  10. ^ "20-Year-Old Charles Eliasch Makes His Opera Debut at Carnegie Hall". HuffPost. 13 March 2013. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  11. ^ a b Houston, Michael (14 June 2021). "New FIS President Eliasch steps down as chief executive of HEAD". insidethegames.biz. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  12. ^ "Johan Eliasch". www.fis-ski.com. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  13. ^ "FIS PRESIDENT RE-ELECTED AS MANY SKI NATIONS BOYCOTT VOTE IN PROTEST". Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  14. ^ "Walk-outs from major ski countries as Eliasch re-elected FIS President and Putin-supporter Vyalbe voted off Council". Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  15. ^ Rizzo, Lillian (14 March 2016). "Aman Resorts Owner Doronin Scores Legal Wins in Long-Running Dispute". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  16. ^ "Big Changes at Britain's Saatchi Gallery, as Visitor Numbers Slide". The New York Times. 4 April 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  17. ^ a b c "Johan Eliasch". World Economic Forum.
  18. ^ "Johan Eliasch has been appointed Chairman at Aman Group". Hospitality Net.
  19. ^ "LONDON FILM PRODUCTIONS LIMITED people - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk.
  20. ^ "The Sunday Times Rich List 2024". www.thetimes.co.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  21. ^ "Seven candidates announced for IOC presidency". olympics.com. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  22. ^ Chittenden, Maurice (13 September 2006). "It's my rainforest now. No logging". The Sunday Times.[dead link]
  23. ^ "The Man Who Bought a Forest". The Guardian. 4 April 2006.
  24. ^ "Johan Eliasch, Gordon Brown consultant, fined for illegal Amazon logging". 7 June 2008. Archived from the original on 25 August 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  25. ^ "Ibama multa madeireira de milionário sueco em R$ 450 mi no Amazonas - 06/06/2008 - Poder". Folha de S.Paulo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  26. ^ "Fairness bei BLICK". Blick (in German). 9 April 2020. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
  27. ^ "Em nota, madeireira Gethal nega práticas ilegais na Amazônia - 07/06/2008 - Últimas Notícias". noticias.uol.com.br. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  28. ^ O’Neill, Sean (7 September 2007). "Green campaigner and businessman who despaired of ineffective politics". The Times. p. T7. Archived from the original on 13 October 2008. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  29. ^ Peel, Lilly (16 October 2008). "Business big shot". The Times. London. p. T43. Factiva T000000020081016e4ag0003r. Archived from the original on 12 June 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  30. ^ "Eliasch Review on International deforestation published |". www.wired-gov.net.
  31. ^ Hayden, Lisa (2010). Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) (PDF). Arlington, Virginia: The Nature Conservancy, Conservation International and Wildlife Conservation Society.
  32. ^ Russell, Ben. "Johan Eliasch: A multimillionaire with a conscience". The Independent. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  33. ^ "Board of Directors". freefutures.org. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  34. ^ "The Brasilinvest Group, created in 1975 by the businessman Mario Garnero, is the first private development agency installed in Brazil (...)", Brazilivest[permanent dead link]
  35. ^ "Advisory Board - Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative". www.schwarzeneggerclimateinitiative.com.
  36. ^ "International advisory board". www.stockholmresilience.org.
  37. ^ Net Zero Review Analysis exploring the key issues (PDF). UK: HM Treasury. 2021. p. 128. ISBN 9781911686316.
  38. ^ "A valuable collection of talents". the Guardian. 7 September 2007.
  39. ^ "Johan Eliasch: Don't let politics prevent us from saving the planet". The Independent. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  40. ^ "Johan Eliasch Political activity". www.famous-people.net.
  41. ^ "About Global Strategy Forum | Global Strategy Forum".
  42. ^ "Staff & Advisory Board member Biographies". globalstrategyforum.org. Archived from the original on 7 June 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  43. ^ Hellen, Nicholas; Ungoed-Thomas, Jon (16 February 2003). "Swedish sports tycoon backs Tories with £1m". The Times. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  44. ^ Ziegler, Martyn (7 March 2020). "Prince Andrew associate in line for skiing presidency". The Times. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  45. ^ "Naples Gold Limited". Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  46. ^ Kirkpatrick, David (24 August 2021). "Prince Andrew Denies Knowing of Sex Trafficking by Epstein". New York Times. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  47. ^ Bates, Stephen (9 March 2011). "Prince Andrew: useful envoy or liability?". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
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