DENVER -- A group of winter-sports athletes and the world's biggest snowboard maker want the president of the International Ski Federation to resign after he spoke of "so-called climate change" and said he would rather deal with dictators than argue with environmentalists.
In an interview with the Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger, Kasper said, "dictators can organize [big] events ... without asking the people's permission" and "from the business side, I say: I just want to go to dictatorships. I do not want to argue with environmentalists."
He also referenced "so-called" climate change and, when challenged on that, responded, "We have snow, sometimes very much." He pointed to frigid temperatures at last year's Pyeongchang Olympics. "To anyone shuddering toward me, I said: Welcome to the global warming," Kasper told the newspaper.
Protect Our Winters is a nonprofit formed in 2007 to combat climate change. Several dozen athletes are part of the alliance, which includes scientists and business leaders.
In their open letter, which included a link for people to add their name to the call for Kasper's resignation, POW said the Tages-Anzeiger story "confirms what insiders in FIS meetings have told us for years: that the leadership of the organization is unwilling to acknowledge scientific evidence that threatens the entire snow industry."
POW refers to studies that document the rapid decline of European glaciers and to economic analysis that shows that seasons with below-average snowfall lead to "decreased value added" of more than $1 billion and 17,400 fewer jobs.
"As a sign of respect for them and the action they want to support, we are declining that donation and asking instead that Gian-Franco Kasper be removed from his position," the open letter said.
Snowboard maker Burton announced that it would write a check to replace the USSA donation.
American snowboarder Sage Kotsenberg agreed.
"The person in that position could have so much power to actually help in the good battle against climate change, and he's denying the science," Kotsenberg told ESPN. "It shouldn't be tolerated ... I think he should step down from his position immediately. The whole snow sports community is demanding he step down from his position immediately."
Kotsenberg called it "disgusting" to know how Kasper thinks of other human beings.
"To say he is over arguing with climate change environmentalists instead of choosing to work together with them to make something positive happen, his whole thought process is so wrong," the snowboarder told ESPN. "He doesn't belong in that position of power."
Kasper has been president of FIS since 1998. He made headlines in 2005 for saying he didn't think ski jumping was "appropriate for ladies from a medical point of view."
Kasper's comments rekindled longstanding issues between the action sports community and FIS. When snowboarding was brought into the Olympics in 1998, many of the sport's leaders held out because they didn't think the federation -- with its base in Europe and with little background in snowboarding -- had their best interest in mind.
Information from ESPN's Alyssa Roenigk and The Associated Press was used in this report.