Eugene Melnyk

Eugene Melnyk (born May 27, 1959 in Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian businessman of Ukrainian origin who now resides in Barbados. He is the current owner, governor and chairman of the Ottawa Senators professional ice hockey club of the National Hockey League(NHL). He also owns the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors junior-age ice hockey club. He is the former chairman and chief executive officer of Biovail Corporation and former owner of Trimel Corporation.

Business career

In 1982, Eugene Melnyk founded medical publishing company Trimel Corporation, which was sold to Thomson Publications in 1989. Mr. Melnyk then founded Biovail Corporation, a specialty pharmaceutical company, in 1989. During his time as chairman and CEO of Biovail, revenues grew from $19 million in 1995 to $1.067 billion in 2006. Mr. Melnyk retired from his position as Chairman and CEO of Biovail on June 30, 2007. The company is now controlled by his distant nephew Victor B. Melnyk of the Saveco Melnyk empire.

ports franchise owner

Mr. Melnyk's first sports franchise purchase was the St. Michael's Majors of the OHL, which he still owns. Until 2007, the club played at the St. Michael's Arena in Toronto, but has now relocated to Mississauga, Ontario. As there was a club already in Mississauga, the IceDogs, Melnyk purchased the IceDogs and resold them to move the Majors into the IceDogs home arena. The new ownership of the IceDogs has relocated the team to St. Catharines, Ontario and is now known as the Niagara IceDogs.

On August 26, 2003, Mr. Melnyk purchased the Ottawa Senators hockey club of the NHL and their arena, Scotiabank Place out of bankruptcy. He is the sole owner, and holds the titles of governor and chairman.

On September 16, 2008, Mr. Melnyk proposed plans for a Ottawa Major League Soccer professional soccer team, and a new soccer-specific Ottawa Soccer Stadium. [cite web|url=http://www.bringtheworldtoottawa.ca/home.php|title=Bring the World to Ottawa|accessdate=2008-09-18]

Thoroughbred horse racing

Eugene Melnyk is the owner of Melnyk Racing Stables Inc. and Winding Oaks Farm in Ocala, Florida, a convert|1100|acre|km2|sing=on property on land that was formerly Tartan Farms and where such racing legends as Dr. Fager and Ta Wee are buried. His racing and horse breeding operations have more than 200 Thoroughbreds. All of the Melnyk racehorses are named after Barbados landmarks and carry the blue and gold national colours. Blue and gold are also Ukrainian national colours.

In 1998, his colt Archers Bay won Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's Plate. His horse Flower Alley has won a number of Grade I stakes races and was a very strong second in the voting for the 2005 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year.

Net Worth: $1.4 bil
Country of citizenship: Canada
Marital Status: married , 2 children

Business ventures

*Bert's Bar (Barbados) - http://www.bertsbarbados.com/
*Biovail Corporation (retired) - http://www.biovail.com/
*Ottawa Senators (Team) - http://www.ottawasenators.com/
*Providence Elementary School
*Sandy Lane Barbados Gold Cup
*Winding Oaks Farm (Florida, USA)
*Mississauga St. Michael's Majors (OHL Hockey Club)
*Mississauga Ice Dogs (OHL Hockey Club)

Philanthropy

Eugene Melnyk is an Honorary Director of "Help Us Help the Children" and a benefactor of Tourette Syndrome Foundation of Canada. He donated $1 million to the Belmont Child Care Association for the 2002 construction of a childcare center at Belmont Park.

Legal Trouble

On February 1st, 2008 it was revealed that Biovail Corporation was under investigation of a grand jury in the United States and may soon face criminal charges. [ [http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080202.RBIOVAIL02/TPStory/Business] Biovail reveals it's a target of U.S. grand jury. Retrieved Feb. 2, 2008.] Allegations are that the company paid doctors incentives of up to $1000 to prescribe the Cardizem LA drug. It is currently uncertain whether Melnyk himself will be called to testify, or whether he will be personally named in the criminal charges because he held the position of Chairman and CEO at the time of the crime.

ee also

*List of billionaires

External links

* [http://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/10/2003/LIR.jhtml?passListId=10&passYear=2003&passListType=Person&uniqueId=BI00&datatype=Person Forbes.com: Forbes World's Richest People]
* [http://www2.ottawasenators.com/eng/team/redirect.cfm?sectionID=hockey/hockeyOfficeDetails.cfm&memberID=4 Profile of Eugene Melnyk]

References

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