Florence Schelling becomes first female GM in Swiss National League history

In a first for Switzerland's National League, and anywhere in pro hockey, a female has been named as General Manager of a hockey team. 31-year-old Florence Schelling is the new GM of SC Bern, taking over from Alex Chatelain.

"We came to the conclusion that the current situation is neither satisfactory for the club nor for Alex Chatelain," explains CEO Marc Luthi in an interview with Watson.ch. "It doesn't matter that a woman follows him. It was important to us that we could win over a young, fresh, intelligent and visionary person. It is much more important than gender that this person knows something about ice hockey."

Schelling will take over the position of General Manager after Easter. After a skiing accident and the associated recovery, the Zurich native will initially work with a 50 percent workload, which she will continuously increase. Schelling, who has coached at the international level, has a master's degree in business administration.

Schelling was the goaltender for the Swiss Women's team at the 2006, 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics. She is the first and only woman to ever play in the Swiss Men's National League B.

"I was probably just as surprised by Marc Luthi's call as you are...,"Schelling said. "In the past few years, I have meticulously dealt with Swiss and international ice hockey. My master's degree and my experience abroad as a player will definitely benefit me in this new position."

Source: Watson.ch

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