George Ernest Killian (April 6, 1924 – December 6, 2017) was an American sports administrator, president of the

International University Sports Federation The International University Sports Federation (FISU; ) is responsible for the organization and governance of worldwide sports competitions for student-athletes between the ages of 17 and 25. It was founded in 1949 as the world governing body of ...

(FISU) and the

International Basketball Federation The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. FIBA defines the rules of basketball, specifies the equipment and facilities required, ...

(FIBA) After receiving his

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in education from the

Ohio Northern University Ohio Northern University (Ohio Northern or ONU) is a private college in Ada, Ohio, United States. Founded by Henry Solomon Lehr in 1871, ONU offers over 60 programs across five undergraduate and graduate colleges and is affiliated with the Unit ...

in 1949, Killian obtained a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in Education from the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo (commonly referred to as UB, University at Buffalo, and sometimes SUNY Buffalo) is a public university, public research university in Buffalo, New York, Buffalo and Amherst, New York, United States. ...

, N.Y. in 1954. The Ohio Northern University honored him in 1989 with a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in Public Service. Killian coached

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

teams of Wharton High School between 1949 and 1951 and Erie Community College, Buffalo, N.Y. from 1954 to 1969. He was president of the international basketball federation

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French language, French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. FIBA defines the rules of basketball, specifies the Basketball equipment ...

between 1990 and 1998. In 1996, he was member of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

in his capacity as president of FIBA. Killian served also as treasurer of COPABA, Panamaerican Basketball Confederation and director of the NJCAA,

National Junior College Athletic Association The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 separate regions across 24 states ...

. After presiding the US delegation at the

Universiade The FISU World University Games, formerly the Universiade, is an international multi-sport event, organized for university athletes by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). The former name is a Blend word, portmanteau of the wor ...

s three times, Killian held office in FISU. He was member of the International Control Commission from 1975 to 1987. Then, he was elected vice president of FISU. In 1995, Killian was promoted to First Vice President. On November 26, 1999, he was confirmed as FISU President by the executive committee succeeding late Dr. Primo Nebiolo. On August 5, 2007, Killian was reelected for a second full term as president of FISU by an overwhelming majority of the votes at FISU's 30th General Assembly, which was held in Bangkok, Thailand. On August 9, 2011, he was replaced by Claude-Louis Gallien as FISU President. Accomplishments: *President of the

(FISU) – 1999–2011 *President of the

(FIBA) – 1990–1998 *Member of the

(IOC) – 1996–1998 *President of the

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...

– 1977–1978 *Board of trustees of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame – 1969–2004 *Award winner – Men's Naismith Outstanding Contribution to Basketball – 2004 *Inductee to the

Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's bask ...

– 2000 Awards: *Ohio Northern University Athletic Hall of Fame – 1979 *W.P. Fehring Award of Merit from the U.S. Baseball Federation – 1982 *NJCAA Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame – 1987 *NJCAA Basketball Hall of Fame – 1988 * John W. Bunn Award from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame – 1989 *Gold Medal Award from the Basketball Federation of Poland – 1998 *

FIBA Order of Merit FIBA Order of Merit is an international basketball award that is awarded by FIBA, the international basketball federation. The award is given to individuals that have made very significant individual contributions to furthering the sport of basket ...

– 2000 *

FIBA Hall of Fame The FIBA Hall of Fame, or FIBA Basketball Hall of Fame, honors players, coaches, teams, referees, and administrators who have greatly contributed to international competitive basketball. It was established by FIBA in 1991. Originally built in ...

- 2010 Former Volunteer Positions: *Secretary/Treasurer – U.S. Track and Field Federation *Board of Directors – U.S. Gymnastics Federation, Basketball Federation of the US, Amateur Basketball *Association of the US, U.S. Wrestling Federations *U.S. Olympic Administrative Committee

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Killian, George E. 1924 births 2017 deaths American women's basketball coaches Basketball coaches from New York (state) High school basketball coaches in the United States FIBA Hall of Fame inductees University at Buffalo alumni Ohio Northern University alumni People from Valley Stream, New York Sportspeople from Hempstead, New York Erie Kats men's basketball coaches Junior college athletic directors in the United States