 The IIHF has sought to honor the people who have made the greatest contributions to developing hockey in their respective nations, and internationally, with the annual induction ceremony taking place on the medal presentation day of the Ice Hockey World Championships.The hall of fame recognized its first members at a ceremony in Helsinki, during the 1997 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships.The longest-serving president of the IIHF at the time, Paul Loicq, and 30 others were members of the inaugural class of inductees.