FINA: Vice president Dennis Miller dies aged 61

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) - Swimming governing body FINA said Friday that vice president Dennis Miller of Fiji had died of cancer. He was 61.

FINA said Miller, a former 100-meter butterfly champion in Fiji, was swim team manager for his home country at the 1982 Commonwealth Games and 1988 Olympic Games, and chef de mission of the Fijian team at the 1996 Olympics.

He became executive director of the Oceania National Olympic Committees in 1997, and was president of the Oceania Swimming Association since 2008.

Miller was also a member of the FINA technical open water swimming committee in 1997, serving for over 10 years, before joining the FINA Bureau, where he has been liaison for open water swimming.

He was also a member of the FINA Executive when he died.

"We are very saddened with this terrible news," FINA president Julio Maglione said. "Dennis was a brilliant administrator and a great promoter of the aquatic sports. He played a very important role in the inclusion of open water swimming in the Olympic program, starting at the 2008 Games in Beijing. His valuable contribution within the Bureau and the executive was of paramount importance for the successful development of our activities."

FINA said Miller is survived by his wife and three children.

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