Patrick Giraudon, owner and chief executive of Arva/Nic Impex, a leading player in the French ski touring market, has taken over from Jean-Luc Diard as president of Outdoor Sports Valley (OSV), a French-based organization representing about 370 members in the outdoor industry. Giraudon, who was already on OSV's board in charge of services to companies, was elected at the group's general assembly in Annecy on June 3, which brought together about 230 people. The strategy advocated by the new president calls for pragmatic actions and concrete benefits to be delivered to member companies. Diard, who has long been involved with the Salomon group and went on to establish Hoka One One, had been OSV's president since it was founded in 2010. He could not run again, since the association's rules dictate that the president may only be elected for two three-year terms. The change is part of a broader board reshuffle for the three years until 2019. The board was reinforced with 19 members and two associate members, mostly managers of international outdoor companies such as The North Face, Columbia Sportswear, Odlo, Patagonia and Tecnica Group. The board previously had 13 members and two associate members. The newcomers are Thomas Rouault from Snowleader, Cédric Georges from Odlo, Armelle Solhelac from Switch, Karen Allais-Pallandre from Links Communication, Benjamin Marias from Air Agence, Cyril Pliquet from Vista Outdoor and Julien Durant from Picture Organic Clothing.

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