Here is the official statement regarding the NCHC's selection of a headquarters office in
Colorado Springs, Colorado.
COLORADO SPRINGS - The new National Collegiate Hockey Conference, which will begin competition in the 2013-14 season, announced today that it will locate its headquarters office in Colorado Springs.
The athletic directors of the Conference's six founding institutions accepted an invitation from El Pomar Foundation and determined the Conference's first commissioner and staff will operate all functions of league administration from the Colorado Springs office in the Copper Building (1631 Mesa Avenue, Colorado Springs, CO, 80906), adjacent to the grounds of the world-famous Broadmoor Hotel. The conference's six founding members are Colorado College, University of Denver, Miami University, 2011 NCAA champion University of Minnesota Duluth, University of Nebraska Omaha and University of North Dakota.
"El Pomar founders Spencer and Julie Penrose were enthusiastic supporters of college hockey in Colorado Springs and the trustees of El Pomar are pleased to honor that legacy by supporting the National Collegiate Hockey Conference as it establishes a headquarters here," said William J. Hybl, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of El Pomar Foundation. "Colorado Springs benefits greatly from the presence of numerous sports-related organizations and we believe this new endeavor will add to an already important economic component of our city."
"We are very grateful to Bill Hybl and El Pomar Foundation for their enthusiastic interest in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference," said Brian Faison, Director of Athletics at North Dakota. "The Foundation's track record of support for higher education, nonprofits and amateur sports has been exemplary, and we are proud to be working with them to provide the best collegiate hockey competition in the country. It's an ideal setting with unmatched advantages that will create a perfect environment for everything we hope to achieve and to represent."
Colorado Springs is a popular location for sports organization headquarters including the United States Olympic Committee, U.S. Paralympics, the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association and 21 national sports governing bodies.
"We're very happy that the National Collegiate Hockey Conference has chosen to join USA Hockey and the entire amateur sports community by headquartering in Colorado Springs," said Dave Ogrean, Executive Director of USA Hockey. "We look forward to working with the Conference office and the six outstanding founding school progams that continue to develop the game at the college level."
The Conference has a number of other organizational initiatives that are underway including the national search for the Conference's first Commissioner, a process for identifying and evaluating prospective additional members and evaluating possible venues for the Conference's championship tournament.
