Welcome to my second President's Newsletter which provides an update for our strongest assets, our Members. As we near the end of 2023, my team continues to strive to bring more rigour, transparency and accountability to our work. We have made great progress this year. We have built capacity to empower our regions, strengthened our governance and accountability and fortified our financial sustainability. Together, we are on the path to becoming the most authoritative voice of global Motorsports and Mobility.
MOHAMMED BEN SULAYEM
THE FIA 120 YEARS ANNIVERSARYDear Members, as we embark on this 120th year of the FIA, we aspire to honour its legacy in motorsports and mobility. Together, we will accelerate towards a future of innovation and sustainable progress.
FINANCIAL HEALTH OF FIAAs I outlined during the General Assemblies week in Baku, we have been transparent in revealing that soon after my Presidential team took office, the financial state that we discovered was unsatisfactory and unsustainable. The Federation was incurring significant losses. We have worked hard to rectify the situation. As certified by the FIA’s auditors, the FIA’s operating loss amounted to €-12.8m in 2019, €-22.1m in 2020, and €-24.0m in 2021. The FIA has reduced its operating loss to €-7.7m in 2022. For 2023, it forecasts a €-3.0m loss, which it plans to further reduce in 2024, targeting a balanced operating result at the latest in 2025. We will be releasing figures for 2021-22 in the coming weeks and 2023 figures in mid-June 2024 for the Extraordinary General Assembly. I have led discussions with Uzbekistan and Rwanda, alongside representatives of our Member Clubs, to secure government funding for the hosting of the FIA Conference and GA/PG respectively in 2024. This eases the burden considerably on FIA finances. We have also introduced an increase of circuit homologation and hologram fees. The fee increase takes account of rising costs of support and safety research in this area.
THE KARTING REVOLUTION IS HEREFollowing numerous requests from our Members to make karting in their regions more cost-effective and accessible, we have listened and thus the Arrive & Drive Karting concept is born. This leisure karting initiative will become the sole focus of our efforts to grow participation. It will also be one of our main Equality, Diversity and Inclusion pillars.
MENA KARTINGA total of 161 competitors from 15 countries took part in the amazing MENA Karting Championship Nations Cup at Lusail International Circuit thanks to a collaboration with the QMMF team. Congratulations to the winners Morocco and all those who took part in this great event.
STARS ARE AT RISK OF WITHDRAWING DUE TO ONLINE ABUSEBased on the results from our first-ever United Against Online Abuse barometer survey, competitors are considering quitting their chosen sport due to intolerable levels of toxicity and hate speech. We had responses from 22 international sporting federations. I am pleased to say that the FIA is leading the way in combatting this scourge on our sport with a knowledge-led approach that seeks to bring behavioural and regulatory change.
CONGRATULATIONS FOR NEW GRADUATESThe FIA University is a key part of our goal to make the FIA a knowledge-led federation, and our ceremony in Baku was a marker of its continuing success with 57 graduates being recognised for their achievements. Find out more and enroll today… FIA University Certificate in Motorsport Leadership and Management FIA University Certificate in Modern Sport Governance FIA University Emerging Leaders Programme FIA University Senior Executive Programme
ONE ROAD, THE FIA-LED GLOBAL LOYALTY PROGRAMMEThe FIA-led One Road programme has grown from strength to strength, successfully onboarding seven Member Clubs from Europe and Asia-Pacific and several prestigious global partners such as Booking.com and Viator.
A FIRST FOR FIA AT COP28The FIA carved out a piece of history as the only Sport and Mobility organisation to have a presence at COP28 in Dubai. We will continue to make our mark at important global events such as this as part of our journey towards carbon neutrality and a more sustainable future for all.
PRESIDENT’S AWARDS WINNERSI was delighted to name the winners of the 2023 President’s Awards in Azerbaijan. We recognised achievements in Climate Action, Road Safety and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI). Each winner receives a €10,000 contribution to their project and other growth and development efforts.
PRESIDENT’S INNOVATION AWARDA unique recognition for innovation, a topic close to my heart, was given to Christian von Koenigsegg for lifetime achievements and contributions in automotive engineering. |
SECRETARY GENERALS VISIT TO CHINAOur Secretary Generals for Sport & Mobility, Valerio Iachizzi, and Jacob Bangsgaard, recently met with CAMF President Zhan Guojun during their visit to China. Top of the agenda was to enhance strategic collaboration.
FIA RESEARCHI set out a vision in the manifesto for the FIA to become a knowledge-led Federation. Recently I commissioned the attached report which, for the first time, lays out the impressive research plans of the FIA in 2023/24. No other federation has such a diverse and impressive research function! SPECIAL THANKSI would like to extend my sincere thanks to everyone from the FIA family who sent their best wishes following my recent illness in Baku. I am recovering well and look forward to resuming my normal duties shortly.
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 | FIA ConferenceUzbekistan 11-14 June 2024 |
 | FIA General Assemblies and Prize GivingRwanda 10-13 December 2024 |