Grand Prix Association of Long Beach president and CEO Jim Michaelian died on Saturday, just four weeks before the street race was scheduled to roar again along the city’s shoreline, association officials said. It was to be the last race he would oversee before passing the reins to incoming CEO Jim Liaw.
Michaelian was 83. His cause of death was not released.
Michaelian wore increasingly larger hats during the past 51 years of the annual race, serving first as the Grand Prix Association’s controller, chief operating officer and then being named president and CEO in December 2001…