Katowice (pps) The urn of Jan Steler, Vice-President for International Affairs of the International Luge Federation (FIL), was buried in his Polish home town of Katovice on Monday, September 25. Besides FIL President Josef Fendt, Vice-President for Finance Harald Steyrer from Austria and Executive Director Hartmut Kardaetz, the President of the Polish luge federation Jan Blonski and numerous other top level officials paid their last respects to the founding member of the FIL. At the open grave, Fendt acknowledged Jan Steler’s merits and condoled with the bereaved family members on behalf of the entire FIL family.

Jan Steler was born in Poland and lived and worked in France since 1959. In 1955 – two years before the official foundation of FIL - he was elected to the Technical Commission of the section luge of the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation, FIBT. With this, he was undoubtedly the longest-serving official of FIL. Steler was FIL Secretary General from 1971 until 1994; from 1994 until his death he served as Vice President for International Affairs.