By Tilman Bishop, Former State Senator
William J. Hybl was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1942. In 1945, his family moved to Pueblo, Colorado, where he grew up and graduated from Pueblo Central High School in 1960. Bill went on to graduate from Colorado College in 1964 and received his Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Colorado School of Law in 1967. With the exception of his military service abroad as a Captain in the United States Army, Bill has lived in Colorado Springs with his wife, Kathy. They have two grown sons, William J., Jr. and Kyle, and six grandchildren.
Hybl is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of El Pomar Foundation, one of the largest and oldest philanthropic foundations in the Rocky Mountain West. El Pomar is a general purpose foundation and a national leader in innovative grant-making. The CSHOF inductee also serves as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Broadmoor Hotel, Inc. and President of the Air Force Academy Foundation.
Because of Hybl’s leadership and untiring effort toward advancing sports and many other organizational endeavors, he has been honored and recognized throughout Colorado, nationally, and internationally. He has received numerous awards, including induction into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame, Colorado College Sports Hall of Fame, City of Pueblo Hall of Fame, U. S. Sports Academy and Citizen of the West.
After serving as Assistant Chef de Mission for the 1988 U. S. Olympic Winter Games Team in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Hybl gained further national and international prominence as President of the United States Olympic Committee (1996-2000 and 1991-1992) and 2000-2002 member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
He headed the USOC Team Delegations at the 1992 Olympic Winter Games in Albertville, France, and the 1992 Olympic Summer Games in Barcelona, Spain. He also led the U. S. Team at the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, and was a member of the 2004 Athens International Olympic Coordination Commission.
Currently,. Hybl is President Emeritus of the United States Olympic Committee, President of the U. S. Olympic Foundation and President of the International University Sports (FISL) Legal Commission. Additionally, he is on the board of USA Gymnastics, President of the Federation International de Gymnastique (FIG) Foundation and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) International Relations Commission.
In 1972-73, Hybl served in the Colorado Legislature and, in 1981, he was Special Counsel to President Ronald Reagan in Washington, D. C. He was appointed Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army in 1986, a position he still holds, and in 2001, he was appointed by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the U. S. Senate as U. S. Representative to the 56th General Assembly of the United Nations. In March, 2003, he was elected Chairman of the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES). IFES currently operates in new and developing democracies in more than 20 nations but since its founding in 1987, it has provided election assistance and contributed to democratic development in more than 100 countries.
Because of Hybl’s leadership and untiring effort toward advancing sports and many other organizational endeavors, he has been honored and recognized throughout Colorado, nationally, and internationally.