Story Summary
Patrik Rimmel has been elected to the board of the Association of Professional Ice Hockey Clubs, APK LH, replacing Aleš Kmoníček in the five-member body that runs the Tipsport Extraliga. The Vítkovice official was chosen at an APK LH general meeting after Kmoníček stepped down at the end of September for time reasons.
Rimmel has worked as Vítkovice’s sporting and executive manager since May 2020. His election adds a figure with playing, club-management, youth-hockey and commercial experience to the Extraliga’s governing structure.
Key Facts
- Patrik Rimmel was elected to replace Aleš Kmoníček on the APK LH board at the association’s general meeting.
- APK LH is the association that runs the Tipsport Extraliga, and its board has five members.
- Kmoníček, the general manager of Mountfield in Hradec Králové, resigned from the board at the end of September because of time commitments.
- Rimmel has served as Vítkovice’s sporting and executive manager since May 2020.
- A Vítkovice youth product, Rimmel played 272 top-flight matches and also represented Olomouc and Havířov.
- After retiring as a player, Rimmel became Havířov’s general manager and was involved in stabilising the club and its return to the first league.
IHM Discussion
Rimmel’s appointment follows a career that has covered several parts of the professional game. As a player, he also spent time in Slovakia, Poland and Norway before moving into management. His post-playing work included a general-manager role in Havířov before his return to Vítkovice.
In his comments after the election, Rimmel said he intended to use roughly 15 years of managerial experience across the first league, Extraliga and youth hockey, alongside experience with partners and marketing. He identified both sporting and commercial development of the Extraliga as areas in which he hopes to contribute.
That background matters because the APK LH role is not confined to one club’s sporting department. Rimmel arrives from a senior position at Vítkovice while joining the body responsible for the wider competition, and his stated focus combines hockey operations with the league’s commercial side.
Why It Matters
The change fills the vacancy created by Kmoníček’s resignation and keeps the APK LH board at its five-member complement. Rimmel brings direct experience from the Extraliga, the first league and youth hockey, as well as club-facing commercial work.
His appointment also places a current Vítkovice sporting and executive manager within the league’s governing body. Rimmel’s stated aim is to apply that breadth of experience to the Extraliga’s sporting and business development, although no specific initiatives were announced.
Mini Q&A
Who has joined the APK LH board?
Patrik Rimmel, Vítkovice’s sporting and executive manager, has been elected to the board.
Why did Aleš Kmoníček leave the board?
Kmoníček resigned from the five-member APK LH body at the end of September because of time commitments.