Lego executive and friend of Denmark’s Queen Mary dies in skiing accident

Michael Halbye, Lego executive and friend of Denmark’s Queen Mary, died on Saturday after a fall during a skiing session, according to Kirkbi, a management company that owns The LEGO Group. He was 64.

Halbye fell while skiing in the Verbier region of the Swiss Alps, Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet reported. He was airlifted to a hospital and died of internal bleeding, Kirkbi said in a Monday statement.

The 64-year-old was a member of the Kirkbi board of directors since 2020, and served as vice chairman of the company since 2022. Kirkbi is a Danish investment company that manages the Kirk Kristiansen family’s wealth, which founded the LEGO Group in 1932.

In a statement, the Kirk Kristiansen family said it is “in deep mourning.”

“Our thoughts and care go to Michael’s family and loved ones, who are now faced with having to process the unexpected loss of a man who in all facets of life has left a great and positive impression on those around him,” Thomas Kirk Kristiansen said. “We will miss Michael as Vice Chairman but first and foremost as a person.”

Halbye was a friend of Queen Mary of Denmark, serving in the board of directors for her foundation, the Mary Foundation. The foundation’s mission is to fight social isolation.

The queen bid farewell to her friend in a statement posted Monday to the foundation’s page, saying that “he will be missed by many.”

“Michael Halbye was a man who possessed a rare positive energy, extensive knowledge and a strong commitment to making a difference for those outside the community,” the queen said.