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TO THROW A MONKEY WRENCHNow It’s Good Old AveryTurnOlympicT aboo?LONDON (CP) — Anothersiicg on the use of professionals has come up to threaten the 1970 world hockey championships to be held in Canada next March.John (Bunny) Ahearne, pi’esi-dcnt of the International Amateur Hockey Federation, said In an interview Thursday that Avery Brundage, the Olympics' chief, has raised strong objections to the use of professionals in the amateur hockey matches.Ahearnc said he spoke to Brundage by telephone several days ago and was told that if any country uses professionals or' participates in matches against professionals, they will become ineligible to participate in the Olympics.Ahearne said the Federation agreed in Switzerland last summer to allow a limited number of professionals to bo used in the 1970 championships.Some member countries objected to the proposal, which had the strong backing of Canada. Ahearne said he cast the deciding vote in Canada's favor to allow professionals tu be used.He now is awaiting an oHicial letter from Brundage on his position. Ahearne also has called j an emergency meeting of hisseven-country council to gatherin Geneva Jan. 3-4 to review the uhole situation on the 1970 Games scheduled for Montreal and Winnipeg.Ahearne said it was hispersonal opinion that some ofNo CauseFor PanicEARL DAWSONCORDON JUCKESFRED PACEBrundage Blear* Fail To Excite ThemOther Canadian hockey officials joined amateur association president Earl Dawson ill expressing little concern for Avery Brundage’s threat to the World Championships.From the Winnipeg Arena, headquarters of the CAHA's executive director Gordon Juckes, came the opinion that he does not believe the Brundage objections have placed the tournament in jeopardy:“I think there has always been a question of Olympicrepresentation and Olympic eligibility and I can’t see that it’s going to endanger the world tournament at all.1’ JuckesDawson Has A FewTrump Cards To DealBy STERLING TAYLORthe European members mayback out of the 1970 champion ships if Canada continues to in-sist on the use of professionals, j However, he was taking a neutral position oil the issue and it would be up to the council to reach a decision on the professionalism problem. The council is made up of two members each from Canada and the United Stales and one member each from Finland, the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, West Germany and Austria.TORONTO (CP) — President Earl Dawson said Thursday the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association “is not getting excited or even taking seriously.” statements from Europe Uiat Canada might not be allowed the use of nine professionals for the 1970 world hockey championships.Dawson was commenting on a statement by Bunny Ahearne.; president of the International j Fee Hockey Federation. Ahearne j said in London earlier in the j day lhat the International Olympic Committee has raised strong objections to the use of profes-s i o ii a I s in amateur hockey matches.Ahearne said he spoke to IOC president Avery Brundage and was told that if any country uses professionals or participates in matches against professionals. they will become ineligible tu participate In the Olympics.“We have three ways oi fighting a statement like that,” Dawson said in a telephone interview from his home in Rivers, Man.“We can sit tight and see what happens and, if the IOC comes through with such a ruling, we can point out that r.ny-one who played hi the recent, tournament at Moscow would be just as ineligible as anyone in the 1970 tournament because the Canadian national team used four professionals in those games.”Dawson added: “And there is one filial course of action. . . . We could simply appeal to professional hockey in North America to change its rules for reinstatement of players to amateur from professional.”The I1HF approved the use of nine professional players by any team in the six-nation world championship A pool at a meeting test July. The federation also approved at that time a rule that allows professional plavcrs to be reinstated to amateur Feb. 10 of the year in which the tournament is played, i Under current NHL rules.which govern professional hockey in North America, a professional player cannot be reinstated unless he has been out of professional hockey for at least one full year.“But, should professional hockey see fit to change that bylaw, we could reinstate nine professionals or a whole team full for that matter,” Dawson said.He said, however, that he did not feel it would come to this.“I know it’s a mish-mash now, but we still have the upper hand. There were professional players on Uie national team that played in Russia last week. We knew the Soviets were going to force the issue over our proposed use of professionals and , so we waited until the fina! day of th Russian tournament.“After every team had played against the Canadian team, we called Ahearne and asked him what was going to happen if the IOC declared amateurs ineligible for the Olympics because they competed against profes-: sionals.said.“It may mean that there wrill have to be a special meeting to clear up the matter but I certainly don’t think that it will jeopardize or endanger thechampionships.”In Vancouver, Fred Page,North American president of the International Ice Hockey Federation, said he had not heard from Ahearne about the latest development. He added:“Frankly, I can't see what ail the fuss is about. Canadas National team, which has just been playing an exhibition series against the main European teams, had professionals in its lineup for the exhibition games. So. presumably, if playing against professionals contaminates them they are already contaminated.“I can’t see that there would be any difference between the exhibition series and championship competition in Canada next March. Where would one draw the parallel?“I feel that will be on-position if the question arises.”MATCH CALLED OFFLONDON (AP) — The English Rugby Union Thursday called off a match between the South Africans and Southern Counties, scheduled for Jan. 28 at Bournemouth, because police could not guarantee the teams protection from anti-apartheid demonstrators.'
Newspaper Details
Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg, Manitoba, CA
Fri, Dec 12, 1969
Page 46
Full Page
Clipped by
Jason P.
USA 14 Mar 2019
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