Switzerland’s Patrick Baumann, the secretary general of basketball's world governing body, has died of a heart attack.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch with Reuters/AP/SDA-ATS; urs
The 51-year-old lawyer succumbed to a cardiac arrest despite getting immediate help while he was attending the Youth Olympics in Argentina, the International Basketball FederationExternal link (FIBA) announced on Sunday.
Baumann first joined FIBA as a lawyer in 1994 and was appointed secretary general eight years later.
He was a member of the International Olympic Committee who was seen as a potential IOC president.
He led an IOC panel evaluating the Paris and Los Angeles bids for the 2024 Games, and then took charge of overseeing preparations for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The IOC said flags will be flown at half-staff at its offices in Buenos Aires and its home city of Lausanne in Switzerland. A memorial will be held in the athlete village in Buenos Aires.
Baumann was key to developing the 3-on-3 urban version of basketball and pushing for its inclusion as an Olympic medal event.
The Swiss sports minister, Guy Parmelin, said he was sad to hear of the death of a great personality and his thoughts were with Baumann’s family.
Swiss money laundering office registers record number of reports
This content was published on
The Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) registered a record number of reports of suspicious activity last year.
Two teens accused of planning terror attack released from custody
This content was published on
The Schaffhausen judiciary has released the two teenagers from custody who allegedly planned bomb attacks in Switzerland.
OECD: Sluggish economic activity slowing growth in Switzerland
This content was published on
Sluggish economic activity at the start of the year is weighing on growth in Switzerland, with GDP expected to fall to 1.1% in 2024.
Report finds mistakes which led to Swiss government data breach
This content was published on
Mistakes were made by both the government and internet company Xplain in the case of a criminal cyber-attack on the Bern-based IT business.
Swiss government wants better gender balance in federal administration
This content was published on
New Swiss government personnel management targets say there must be even more female managers in the federal administration.
Swiss national science foundation funded over 5,000 projects in 2023
This content was published on
In 2023, the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) provided a total of CHF961 million worth of funding towards research projects.
Switzerland invites 160 delegations to June Ukraine peace talks
This content was published on
Russia is currently not among the delegations invited to talks aimed at helping bring about peace in the conflict between Moscow and Ukraine.
Survey: air travel most popular way to go on holidays for Swiss
This content was published on
Despite the climate crisis, flying is the most popular mode of transport for private travel – particularly among young, urban and high-income travellers.
Swiss government to use phone data to identify asylum seekers
This content was published on
From April 2025, authorities plan to be able to analyse data from mobile phones, computers and other data carriers to identify asylum seekers.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss official shoots to basketball success (INTERVIEW)
This content was published on
Basketball has been Baumann’s passion since he was a child. He tells swissinfo about his work promoting the sport, the outlook for Switzerland, and how he no longer has time to get on the court himself. The sport has gained in popularity in Switzerland since Thabo Sefolosha became the first ever Swiss player to join…
NBA star Thabo Sefolosha gets $4m in NYPD settlement
This content was published on
Sefolosha will receive the pay-out in exchange for dropping his April 2016 police brutality lawsuit against the NYPD officers. The New York City Law Department confirmed the $4 million (CHF4 million) settlement for Sefolosha. The Swiss basketball player settled his lawsuit after he was acquitted of criminal charges stemming from a police fracas outside a…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.