The second edition of the FIA International Stewards Programme has seen attendance triple since the inaugural event in 2017. Over 270 participants from 65 ASNs have taken part in the three-day course from 9-11 February, which has been designed as an educational tool to support the growing network of stewards and officials around the world.

One of the key features of the Programme was a focus on participation and dialogue, with the schedule containing a vibrant mixture of presentations, panel discussions and interactive workshops. Topics ranged from the practical information that is essential to stewarding, such as writing decisions and the FIA Judicial and Disciplinary System, to the perspectives of competitors and information on the role of stewards in the process of antidoping.

For the first time, ASNs were encouraged to bring two of their top national stewards to join the Programme, and the ten most outstanding will be selected to become International Stewards. This was the first step towards the ‘Global Pathway for FIA Stewards’ – a concept that aims to share the collective experience from the highest world championship levels all the way to the grassroots. Therefore, in the same way as drivers rise up the pyramid of the sport as they develop, the Global Pathway will help stewards learn and develop at the national level before progressing to the international level.

Participants engaged in six different case studies during the course of the Programme from across a broad spectrum of motor sport disciplines. These were led by a Chairman of the Stewards for the respective championships, including the FIA Formula One World Championship, FIA World Rally Championship and FIA Formula 2 Championship. By using real-world examples in an open forum, it provided the ideal opportunity to share ideas and best practices.

FIA Secretary-General for Sport, Peter Bayer, closed the meeting, and said, “We are blazing the trail for the Global Pathway for stewards. I think it’s especially important to have stewards from a variety of championships and I know there have been some very significant discussions here this weekend.

We are doing this to educate our stewards in the best possible way so they are well prepared to take consistent, accurate, independent, efficient and transparent decisions”

I would like to thank the stewards who are working at the top level internationally for coming back this year to help and educate your colleagues with your experience. It is important for us to support the ASNs – building the future of our sport globally is our most important task.”

FIA Safety Director, Laurent Mekies, said, “We have tripled the number of participants coming, and more importantly not just the FIA Stewards, we are also inviting the ASNs to bring their best national stewards to come here to learn.

“I think it has been fantastic, we have had such great engagement and interaction, especially in the case studies which everyone approached really proactively. I think the message from the event is that we are a big community, and the FIA is here to support it, to grow it and to drive it forward in future. We will do everything it takes to keep improving the pathway and make stewarding the best it can be.”