FIM Europe MAG 6-2016

Nr 6/2016 - November-December

FIM EUROPE COURSE IN MOTORCYCLE MANAGEMENT AT ROME ROAD SAFETY DEBATE FOCUS ON: TRACK RACING COMMISSION

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FIM Europe at FIM Dinner Debate 2016

FIM, FIM Europe and FMI at the Course in Motorcycle Management at Rome

10 16 FIM Europe Sporting Commissions Meeting at Fiumicino

Focus on: Track Racing Commission

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Touring Activities

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Chief Editor: Fiammetta La Guidara Photos: Dorna, Youthstream, R. Pairan, M. Zanzani FIM EUROPE Via Giulio Romano, 18 00196 - Rome Italy E-mail: fimeuropepress@gmail.com Ph. +39 06 3226746 FIM Europe MAG #6 November-December 2016 The articles published in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the official position of FIM Europe.

The content of this publication is based on the best knowledge and information available at the time the articles were written.

The copying of articles and photos even partially is forbidden unless permission has been requested from FIM Europe in advance and reference is made to the source (ŠFIM Europe)

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FIM, FIM Europe and FMI at the Course in Motorcycle Management at Rome

From the top, The opening of the FIM Europe Course in Motorcycle Management and former World Superbike rider Michel Fabrizio during his speech

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The opening lesson of the Advanced Course in Motorcycling Management was held at the Council Hall “Giulio Marinozzi” of the University of Rome "Foro Italico" on November 11th. More than 20 participants were welcomed by the FIM Europe Secretary General Alessandro Sambuco, who is also one of the teachers, illustrating vision and objectives of the Course.

«Today we’ve begun a journey together after which I hope we all will be enriched», stated Alessandro Sambuco. «In fact I hope that both teachers and participants will find themselves better at the end of this journey. The participants are expected to get better knowledge related to sports in general and to motorcycling in particular, they should be more aware of their own capabilities and braver in undertaking the way of Team Managers. Our sport needs new

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Above, Michel Fabrizio during his speech. Aside, FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb and FIM Europe Secretary General Alessandro Sambuco with Prof Gennaro Terracciano, Vice Rector of University of Rome Foro Italico.

nourishment and energy and I am sure they will be able to give it.

«From their side, the teachers, at the end of this experience, are expected to be able to evaluate their teaching offer and to adapt it to new issues and to the next stage, which foresees the extension of this Course also to other European Countries. This is the goal that FIM Europe has for the coming years and where we are determined to go», Alessandro Sambuco concluded.

«This training course is fully consistent with the action of the university, which besides having the usual degree courses is opened not only to the territory but above all the federations, to develop postgraduate training cour-

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Above, Alessandro Sambuco and Michel Fabrizio.

Aside Dr Wolfgang Srb and Prof Fabio Pigozzi during his speech. Below, the Lawyer Mr Jos Driessen, Member of the FIM Board of Directors

ses or which somehow create the conditions for specific professions in the sports world», stated Prof Gennaro Terracciano, Vice Rector of University of Rome Foro Italico.

«This specialization course has had a particular gestation because it is aimed to combine both vocational and scientific aspects, in order to give to the participants not only a correct theoretical approach but also the chance to take advantage of the experiences of teachers and guests who perform a testimony, thus acquiring even pragmatically the tools to be able to exercise professional activities in a highly complex environment».

At the opening day of the Course also Michel Fabrizio was present:

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the World Superbike rider is now engaged in the new role of Team Manager for Althea Team. «This is an excellent initiative. I did not expect so much passionate people who want to be part of this so captivating world. I am glad to see that among the lessons is also the one that teaches you to deal with parents. Many of

them, in fact, believe that their children have Valentino Rossi or Marc Marquez’s skills… », Michel Fabrizio said after the meeting.

«I will attend this course because you never finish learning. When you are a rider you put the helmet on and go. Here you have to manage a team,

even people older than you. I expect to learn new things.

Also Alessandro Sambuco has a lot to say because he has done everything in racing, from instructor and trainer to Secretary General of FIM Europe.

And then at the end I’ll finally have a degree, which will make happy my grandma!»

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In the other page, from the top, the speech of Dr Wolfgang Srb and of Alessandro Sambuco. Above, the speech of Paolo Sesti, a few days before leaving FMI Presidence. Aside, Prof.

Francesco Purromuto during his speech.

Below, Fabio Pigozzi handed an award to Dr Wolfgang Srb, Alessandro Sambuco and Jos Driessen

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FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb leaves the podium to talk to the students of the University Master.

In the other page, the group of the participants of the FIM Europe Advanced Course in Motorcycle Management with FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb, the Lawyer Mr Jos Driessen, Member of the FIM Board of Directors, and the former President of the Italian Motorcycle Federation Mr Paolo Sesti.

The second day of the Advanced Course in Motorcycling Management was held at the Council Hall “Giulio Marinozzi” of the University of Rome "Foro Italico" and saw the participation of the Lawyer Mr Jos Driessen, Member of the FIM Board of Directors, of FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb, of FIM Europe Secretary General Alessandro Sambuco, of the President of the Italian Motorcycle Federation Mr Paolo Sesti, and of Prof.

Francesco Purromuto, lawyer and teacher of Law and Sports Organization at UNICLAM, University of Cassino and of South Lazio.

At the end of the morning, Prof Fabio Pigozzi, Rector of the Uni8

versity of Rome “Foro Italico” intervened to greet the students and the organizers of the Advanced Course and gave a thankingplate to Mr Jos Driessen, to Dr Wolfgang Srb and to Alessandro Sambuco.

In its second day, the Course touched the first deep topics, with lessons based on the Motorcycling Organizations inside the panorama of the International sports organization.

«Also for FIM this Course at the University of Rome is a milestone in communication outside the Federation», stated the Lawyer Mr Jos Driessen, Member of the FIM Board of Directors.

«FIM is not only sports but in a modern organization you have

to come out and become more than in the past a credible advocate for motorcycling at our level».

«The Course is based on a pyramid: the International Federation, the European Federation and the National Federations», stated Paolo Sesti, President of Italian Federation. «It is clear that compared to international ones, the national federations are closer to the competition field, so for my part I tried to make it clear how the Italian and the other National Federations operate and what happens behind the stage. There is so much work, there is so much preparation and there are many difficulties to overcome before

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taking riders on the competition field.

I saw great attention from the students, which makes me happy».

«In this course I will cover the segment related to International Sports Organization, and I have positively noticed the complex of all other topics that will be developed as part of this Course», stated Prof Francesco Purromuto, lawyer and teacher of Law and Sports Organization at UNICLAM, University of Cassino and of South Lazio.

«Those who organized this Course have definitely hit the target. I am sure that those who participate at the end will declare themselves satisfied and will be in the conditions to take any choices in the field of management and in particular in motorcycling management. Congratulations to FIM Europe and to the hosting University».

«This initiative confirms the long existing partnership with the Federation headed by Dr Wolfgang Srb, which cares about all those aspects which are

related to the training of all professionals in the context of FIM Europe», stated Prof. Fabio Pigozzi. «As rector of this University I am particularly pleased to give my personal welcome and that of the academic community, to this important initiative aimed at training in an important context such as motorcycling management».

«The ‘Advanced Course in Motorcycling Management’ at the famous University "Foro Italico" in Rome is of utmost importance for FIM Europe», stated Dr Wolfgang Srb, FIM Europe President.

«While sport is our core business and reason for being we believe strongly in education and permanent learning. For those who want to work at a National Federation or as a Team Manager a broad knowledge and a general overview in the sport and business law, contractual and fiscal law, sport marketing, communication, etc. is indispensable. I wish all the participants a lot of success».

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From the left John Chatterton-Ross, FIM/FIM Europe Director of Public Affairs, Jesper Christensen, FIM’s Director of Public Affairs Commission, Silvio Manicardi, FIM Europe Vice President, Inés Ayala Sender and Wim van de Camp, members of the European Parliament, Steve Aeschlimann, FIM Executive Director Operations and Hennes Fischer ACEM ITS committee chairman and member of the CMC

The FIM Dinner Debate 2016 “Sharing the Road with Robots: When Motorcycling Meets Automation” took place in Brussels on

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19th October. Representatives from the motorcycling community, the industry and EU decision-makers exchanged over the future in-

teraction between automated vehicles and powered two-wheelers, stressing the need to make roads safer for all transport modes.

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FIM announced during the evening its intention to join the Connected Motorcycle Consortium (CMC).

The event was hosted by two influential Members of the European Parliament, Mr Wim van de Camp (EPP, NL) and Mrs Inés Ayala Sender (S&D, ES), who opened the debate by depicting the great safety potential of Intelligent Transport Systems for motorcyclists but also the importance for politicians to strike the right balance between supporting innovation and avoiding safety hazards.

Mr Jos Driessen, FIM Board Member, welcomed the participants on behalf of the FIM and underlined the importance of a science based approach to road safety.

He stressed that FIM promotes this in the same way it uses a science based approach to safety in sports.

Mr Antony Lagrange, coordinator of the European Commission GEAR 2030 «Highly automated and connected vehicles” Working Group outlined the need to act quickly, given the fact that autonomous driving systems are already being introduced on the market, together with as many stakeholders from the value chain as possible, and right, increasing general safety levels for all road users.

Mr Hennes Fischer from Yamaha (member of the CMC), ACEM ITS committee chairman and former FIM World record holder on speed over distance at 100 km and 1.000 km in 1981, echoed the importance of connectivity, demonstrating how this will be key to securing swiftly road safety bene-

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fits at a reasonable cost for all motorcyclists.

This view was supported by FIM’s Director of Public Affairs Commission, Mr Jesper Christensen, who highlighted the important, quick changes in the technological and commercial landscape and the need to put motorcycles at the heart of these new developments.

The dinner ended with a lively Q&A session, stressing the differences between detection and recognition, the future challenges of “coding ethics” into automated vehicles and the need to be realistic and transparent about self-driving technologies.

In his closing remarks, Mr Steve Aeschlimann, FIM Executive Director Operations, thanked all participants for their contribution, reiterated the need to have inclusive dialogue on such matters as all users share the same roads. He outlined that for this purpose, FIM intends to become an associated member of the Connected Motorcycle Consortium.

Mr Silvio Manicardi, FIM Europe Vice-President commented: «The annual Dinner Debate has shown as usual the need for such discussion to enlarge the awareness among all parties and to explain the riders’ position on the delicate subject of automation. We want EU decision-makers to make sure that PTW-users are included in the discussion to increase road safety for all».

The photo call outside the European Parliament in Brussels was supported this year by Triumph Motorcycles Ltd.

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In the other page, from the top, Jos Driessen, FIM Board Member, Inés Ayala Sender and Wim van de Camp, members of the European Parliament, Steve Aeschlimann, FIM Executive Director Operations and Hennes Fischer ACEM ITS committee chairman and member of the CMC. In this page, from the top John Chatterton-Ross, FIM/FIM Europe Director of Public Affairs, and Antony Lagrange, coordinator of the European Commission GEAR 2030

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Coordination meeting between FIM/FIM Europe and FEMA

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On October 20th the planned meeting between FIM/FIM Europe and FEMA was held at Brussels, in Belgium, in the context of the initiatives aimed to coordinate intervention and communication strategies about the many topics being discussed at European level and with a focus on mobility and to security.

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From the left Wim Taal, FEMA Communications Officer, Silvio Manicardi, FIM Europe Vice President, Dolf Willigers, FEMA Secretary General, Rolf Frieling of FEMA, John ChattertonRoss, FIM/FIM Europe Director of Public Affairs, Morten Hansen, new elected Chairman of the Working Group and Jesper Christensen, FIM’s Director of Public Affairs Commission

The meeting was attended for FEMA by Morten Hansen, the Secretary General Dolf Willigers, Rolf Frieling and the Communications Officer Wim Taal and for FIM/FIM Europe by Vice President Silvio Manicardi, Jesper Christensen and John Chatterton-Ross.

During the meeting, the new Working Group Chairman was elected for the upcoming 12 months, that is till October 2017: Morten Hansen of FEMA is succeeding to Jesper Christensen of FIM.

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The PTW sector must daily confront with limitations and prejudices that can restrict their circulation or even make it more dangerous. Some examples are the initiatives to stop the circulation of a high number of PTW in Paris, the intensive use of cable barriers in Sweden and the rapid development of autonomous driving, with the risk of not properly considering motorcyclists, with all possible dramatic consequences.

«FEMA and FIM Europe, repre-

senting 37 million users of motorcyclists in Europe, have been carring out for a long time their concerns with various stakeholders that operate in Brussels», stated Silvio Manicardi, FIM Vice President Europe. «I appreciate the sense of cooperation and friendship of all the members of the Working Group to achieve the common goals».

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Sporting Commissions Meeting First Session at Fiumicino

The participants of the Sporting Commissions at Fiumicino, near Rome

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Above, the Motocross and Snowcross Commission, chaired by Mr Eddie Herd Below, the Trial Commission, chaired by Mr Anders Minken

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The FIM Europe Commission Meetings have been opened by the first session of Sporting Commissions, which will be followed by the second session of Sporting Commissions in November and by the Non-Sporting Commissions next January.

As in the past, the meeting was held in Tiber Hotel at Fiumicino, near Rome (Italy).

In the first session the meetings of Motocross and Snowcross, Trial, Supermoto and Drag Racing Commissions were held, with the participation of the Sporting Council Chairman Mr Martin de Graaff and of FIM Europe Secretary General Mr Alessandro Sambuco.

Joining the meeting, also Tony Skillington, Director of Motocross Commission of FIM and the FIM Trial Commission Director Mr Thierry Michaud.

«Four sporting commissions met this weekend in order to evaluate the last season and to prepare 2017. Sporting rules were discussed in depth», stated Mr Martin De Graaff. «The commissions tried to prepare the several calendars for the European Championships next year and talked about proposals for the Management Council meeting which will take place in December. In a good atmosphere they cooperated with members of the Management Council, the FIM Europe staff and the directors of FIM Commissions».

«In the Motocross and Snowcross Commission the main topic was

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Above, the Drag Racing Commission, chaired by Mr Palle Lind Below, the Supermoto Commission, chaired by Mr Ivo Tsvetanov

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the calendar for 2017 which will be finalised within the next 2 weeks and then will be approved

by FIM Europe Management Council and Youthstream», stated Mr Eddie Herd. «Next year’s European Snowcross Championship will be combined with World Snowcross Championship. The Women’s Championship will be 5 rounds, developed from the experimental one-round Cup of this year. European Hillclimb Cup will be reintroduced: this will be a one-event championship. The Motocross of European Nations, combined with the Women Motocross of European Nations, will be held in 2017 in Poland».

«In the Trial Commission my main concern was to finalise the 2017 calendar. Due to unforeseen problems we only have the start of the season ready but within a few

weeks it will be published», said Mr Anders Minken. «For the sporting season there will be small changes to the rules. The Commission is happy with the progress of the past years and we’ll keep going in the same direction».

«The Supermoto Commission is continuing its work concerning the 2017 season», Mr Ivo Tsvetanov stated. «During the meeting the major proposals were discussed with the aim to attract more riders and organisers for the future. A very deep review of 2016 season has been carried out».

«The Drag Racing Commission is working on increasing the number of European rounds of the series to 4 races in 2017 and is also working to optimise the regulations», Mr Palle Lind stated.

«The new meeting circle, where the European Commissions come together on the same weekend and at the same venue, is already in the second year and very well established», stated Dr Wolfgang Srb, FIM Europe President. «The presence of the FIM Commission Directors adds additional value and underlines the principle of the closest possible cooperation.

We are united in the passion for the sport and it shows. I am very happy what has been achieved in a relatively short time».

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Sporting Commissions Meeting Second Session at Fiumicino

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The participants of the Sporting Commissions at Fiumicino, near Rome

The FIM Europe Commission Meetings continued with the second session of Sporting Commissions, which followed the first session of Sporting Commissions in October and which will be followed by the Non-Sporting Commis-

sions next January.

The meeting was held, as in the past, at the Tiber Hotel in Fiumicino, near Rome (Italy). In this second session, the meetings of Road Racing, Track Racing, Enduro and Vintage were held, with

the participation of the FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb, of Sporting Council Chairman Martin de Graaff and of FIM Europe Secretary General Alessandro Sambuco. Joining the meeting, also Rezsรถ Bulcsu, Di-

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The Road Racing Commission, chaired by Mr Ejgil Solkaer

The Track Racing Commission, chaired by Mr Piotr Szymanski

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rector of the Circuit Racing Commission of FIM and Armando Castagna, Director of Track Racing Commission of FIM. Road Racing Commission «Very good decisions were taken during the meeting», stated Mr Ejgil Solkaer, FIM Europe Road Racing Commission Chairman. «Completely new is that we are going to have Street Freestyle, a new discipline that will be on test next year with one round in Hungary. The Commission is very pleased with the cooperation with Dorna and the new classes we have: the European Superstock 1000 Championship at the European rounds of WSBK and the European Superstock 300 together with Alpe Adria Motorcycle Union. The Supersport 600 Cup has been confirmed to go on next year at the European rounds of the World Superbike. We’ll also be running the Hill Climb with 5 rounds next year, and the Supermono Cup, too. We’ll have a special working group for Minimoto Road Racing, since we expect to have a new championship in 2017».

Track Racing Commission «The meeting was very long but it went well», stated Mr Piotr Szymanski, Track Racing Commission Chairman. «The FIM Track Racing Commission Director Armando Castagna was present, too. A very important topic we discussed about, was how to find out more possibilities for young riders to catch experience in Track Racing disciplines.The members gave a lot of valuable proposals about the rules and new regulations and we studied very deeply the amen-

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The Enduro and Rally Commission, chaired by Mr Marco Bolzonello

dments to the “FIM Europe Organisers Track Racing Work Manual”. Of course we reviewed the season and we worked on the calendar and venues for 2017. We also talked about safety on tracks and especially about new rules which allowed to improve protection for riders.

We assigned a lot of tasks to our members and they committed to work very hard on them. I am glad the members of the Commission want

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to be deeply involved in the work. I am also happy the 2016 season went very well without any problems and of course I am confident that the next season will bring us the new goals we wish to achieve».

Enduro and Rally Commission «As usual the Commission meeting was rather long, also because all members are really involved in the various disciplines», stated Mr

Marco Bolzonello, Enduro and Rally Com- mission Chairman. «The topics concerned the promotion of the Extreme Enduro, of the Cross Country and of the two events of Superenduro Cup which will be held together with World Superenduro Championship. As for Enduro, we defined the calendar for 2017. As for Bajas, we added in our calendar the race asked by Bulgarian Federation and we are still

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waiting for FIM to clarify some technical rules about the UTV vehicles. As for Cross Country, the good news is that next year we shall have one round in Iceland.

We have received with pleasure the proposal from the Vintage Commission concerning some Enduro rounds together with historic bikes.

Our Commission is favourable, but we must wait to know whether the Federations which asked to host a

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round of European Enduro Championship also agree to have Vintage bikes on track.

Details will be fixed in a short time».

Vintage Commission «One important point is that we have a new member, Jordi Villalba, from the RFME, Spain», stated Mr José Campos Costa, Vintage Commission Chairman. «We have discussed our situation re-

garding this year, with the Road Racing Championship and the Endurance Classic Series which were very successful. For next year we have some calendar suggestions regarding the Road Racing, and we are waiting from our promoter DGSport the dates for the ECS. We have been discussing also Enduro, as we have had an observer at the Six Days in Navarra. We hope to organise next year an Enduro Cup

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The Vintage Commission, chaired by Mr José Campos Costa

as we have already completed the rules. For that we have met with the Enduro Commission and we are going to study together the possibility of running some races of this Championship together with Classic Cup. «We are concerned about the level of participation of young riders in Classic races

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and we want to suggest to the Management Council that this matter is taken up by the FIM Europe, because otherwise Classic Races and, more important, the Classic bikes themselves, will disappear!»

Mr Martin de Graaff, FIM Europe 1st Deputy President, stated: «Like two weeks ago,

four FIM Europe Commissions had their meeting in Fiumicino. All events of the current year, from the Congress in July until this meeting, were evaluated. The results of the competions have been approved. New classes, changes of regulations and developments for the next season were discussed. A positive development is the better FIM Europe Mag 6/2016

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cooperation between FIM and FIM Europe: it was highly appreciated to meet two FIM Sporting directors, Rezsö Bulcsu and Armando Castagna in our meetings. In a good atmosphere the Commissions worked together with the Management Council and the Staff».

«The new meeting circle,

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where the European Commissions come together on the same weekend and at the same venue, is already very well est»blished”, stated Dr Srb, FIM Europe Wolfgang President. «The presence of the FIM Commission Directors adds additional value and underlines the principle of the closest possible cooperation. I am very happy with

the work the European Federations and the officials have carried out and I like to thank them for their great efforts. We are in the process of finishing 2016 with some formal meetings and are already very excited about all the events in 2017».

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SPORT NEWS

From the left, Martin Van Genderen, MXGP Academy trainer, Dr Wolfgang Srb, FIM Europe President, Patrice Assendelft, KNMV CEO, Giuseppe Luongo, Youthstream President and Marcel Hartman, Head Coach KMNV Photos @Youthstream

MXGP Academy for Rookies The MXGP Academy launched a pilot for young talented motocross riders in November 2016 in the Netherlands.

This new international project is called ‘MXGP Rookies’ and it is a result of a close partnership of Youthstream, FIM Europe and the KNMV (Royal Dutch Motorcycle Federation). These parties have 30

joined forces in order to educate young MX riders in ‘new motocross countries’ like Qatar, Malaysia and Thailand. The prestigious four year education program will start in 2017 after the pilot is evaluated.

Five young riders (one from Belgium, one from Germany and three from the Netherlands) will

receive a full time training of four months at the High Performance Centre Papendal, located in Arnhem. The talented youngsters will be guided by several specialists like exercise physiologists, strength coaches and dieticians, who are all available at the Olympic centre. Riders will train and live among 375 other athletes from 12 different sports.

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SPORT NEWS

Regular training at Dutch motocross circuits is complemented by winter internships of the KNMV in Spain, so a variety of practice circuits is offered. The motocross training is supervised by Marcel Hartman, head coach of the Netherlands.

Giuseppe Luongo, President Youthstream Group stated: «The MXGP Academy Rookie project is another extremely important step in helping young talent grow and to possibly one day become a professional MXGP rider competing in the most prestigious Motocross Championship in the world. This project is the first of its kind in our sport and we would like to thank FIM-Europe, KNMV and the High Performance Center Papendal who together with Youthstream have driven and financed this activity. The goal is to build on this program and bring youth from all over the world to help them enter the world of professional Motocross without denying any schooling”.

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Marcel Hartman of the Dutch Federation (KNMV) is Federation coach. Riders selected for this first “Pilot”are from The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.

Dutch rider Kay Karssemakers will follow a part of this program but is not internal at Papendal because of his age.

Program: all selected riders will get a program in a system of a boarding school for a period of 4 months at Papendal Sport Centrum, with the same set up as in several other sports like Judo, Athletics, BMX and other individual and team sports. Many athletes prepare the selection and participation for the Olympic Games this way. The program is based on two months preparation in physical aspects and after that, motor training is of course a big part of the program and will take place in Spain and the Netherlands.

Today the riders, together with the parents and other supervisors were present for the explanation

and elucidation of several support systems like Polar heart Rate Monitors, Sports database and Nutrition. School and homework will be guided, everyday, by specialists and teachers at Papendal.

In this way these young athletes can continue their education program of their home country.

The target of this program is to organize on annual base training periods in the Papendal Sports Centre for more selected young riders from all over the world.

Dr Wolfgang Srb, President FIM Europe, stated: «I am very excited that we started this promising project, after months of hard work, preparations and evaluations. FIM Europe does not only believe in sport as our core business but also, as an important pillar, in education. Papendal is the perfect location and the partners give full support: KNMV with a vast experience in sport and training of young riders, the MXGP Academy with a strong record of training and pro31

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In the front page, from the left, Marcel Hartman (coach), Marnique Appelt, Wannes van der Voorde, Marcel Conijn, Kay Karssemakers, Raf Meuwissen, Raivo Dankers, Herjan Brakke (assistant coach).

Below, the Information about nutrition in the Papendal Sports Restaurant.Above, the meeting in Riga for trainers

moting young talents, Youthstream as the leading promoter of Motocross on World as well as on European level and FIM Europe as the biggest and most active Continental Union of FIM».

Marcel Hartman, head coach KNMV added: «This really is a unique motocross project where riders can make big steps in their individual development».

MXGP Academy is also for trainers On November 18th 20 trainers from Latvia, Russia and Romania were present in Riga (Latvia) for education and instructions in the FIM Europe MXGP Academy certification program. The trainers followed their education, receiFIM Europe Mag 6/2016

ved information and made the test for MX-B. All trainers were successful in obtaining the certificate MX-B. A new Country, which is connecting to the trainers’ platform, is Russia. No less than four new trainers are connected now and will roll out the certification program in their home Country.

Besides that, Mrs Teija Piirto from Finland was present as well to promote her project MX Safety.

This program could be a great help for all trainers, who are connected to the FIM Europe MXGP Academy platform and their local clubs. This is important in order to create more safety on the MX tracks. Unfortunately most accidents happen during free practices at club tracks. Most of the

time there is a kind of panic when this happens. Clubs can have a preventive effect with this signal system. In case something happens information is available that can prevent worse consequences and can simultaneously react quickly according to the appropriate protocol. All trainers were positive about this project and will investigate at their local clubs, about the possibilities to start up this safety sign program.

The next meeting will be in November 2017, in Riga again, for MX-C. This meeting will take two days, because the education for trainers and future riders will need more time than the A and B certification.

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Extraordinary General Assembly of FIM Europe at Berlin

The Extraordinary General Assembly of FIM Europe was held today at Berlin, with the presence of 31 National Federations.

A few changes to the Sporting Code have been discussed and

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decided as well as the relocation of the 2017 FIM Europe Congress, which will be held now from 28th June to 1st July in Rome (Italy).

Mr Hannu Toumainen from SML was elected

as member of the Judicial Panel, obtaining more votes than the candidate from AMOTOE, Mr Theodoros Rachiotis.

The Federations of Czech Republic and Serbia informed

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about the interest to host the FIM Europe Congress in the near future.

«I am very happy with results of the Extraordinary General Assembly, held in conjunction with the

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FIM General Assembly and Gala», stated Dr Wolfgang Srb, FIM Europe President.

«The necessary decisions have been taken to align the FIM Europe Sporting Code with the FIM

Sporting Code, valid as of 1st January 2017.

“The 2017 Congress will be held in Rome and I expect the very best».

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Above, a moment of the voting for the election of the Judicial Panel member, some of the participants to the FIM Europe Extraordinary General Assembly. In the other page, the speech of Dr Wolfgang Srb, FIM Europe President

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In the other page from the top, Alessandro Sambuco, Martin de Graaff and Jan Stovicek.

In this page, from the top, Mr Hannu Toumainen from SML, elected as member of the Judicial Panel, and Mr Theodoros Rachiotis from AMOTOE. Below Mirko Butulija, President of Serbian Federation.

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Below, the participants of the General Assembly in Berlin. From the left, Silvio Manicardi, 2nd Deputy President, Nina Birjukova,Vicepresident, Michal Sikora, Vicepresident and Treasurer, Alessandro Sambuco, Secretary General, Dr Wolfgang Srb, FIM Europe President, Martin de Graaf, 1st Deputy President, and the other Vicepresidents Michel Turk, Juhani Halme, Jean Marc Desnues and Jan Stovicek.

In the other page, a moment of Dr Wolfgang Srb’s speech.

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FIM Europe Management Council at Fiumicino

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The meeting of the FIM Europe Management Council was held today in Fiumicino, near Rome (Italy).

Among the topics that have been discussed were the Report of the President, the Report of the Secretary General

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Alessandro Sambuco, Sporting as well as Non-Sporting questions (Martin de Graaff and Silvio Manicardi) and the Report of the Treasurer Michal Sikora.

«Today’s meeting was one of the most important of the

whole year, as the Sporting season 2016 was analysed as well as changes to the Sporting rules and the 2017 calendars were approved», FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb stated.

«The Working Group on ‘Mini-

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From the left Silvia Monatti, Rodolfo Romeo, Juhani Halme, Michal Sikora, Martin de Graaff, Alessandro Sambuco, Dr Wolfgang Srb, Michel Turk, Nina Birjukova, Jean Marc Desnues, Silvio Manicardi and Jan Stovicek

mum Age in International Motorsport’ has produced excellent results, which have been the basis for the decision at the recently held FIM General Assembly to bring back the 65cc Motocross World Cup. An important input was the expertise of Professor Dr Fabio Pi-

FIM Europe Mag 6/2016

gozzi and Professor Dr Marjan Olfers, who added valuable academic content.

«The economical situation in Europe is still difficult but the work carried out by the European Federations is very good and I’m happy about it.

«FIM Europe is dealing with all aspects of Sport, Non-Sport, training and education. The development of the sport at affordable costs is very high on the agenda.

«Through the strong commitment of thousands of volunteers and a hard work the European Federations could achieve, in general, their objectives», Dr Srb added.

«Also this year the administration in Rome has carried out a great job and is well-respected service center for all our Federations», FIM Europe President concluded.

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FIM Europe at the opening of the new building of KTM Motorsport in Munderfing, Austria

In the other page, the new building of KTM Motorsport and, below, from the left, Harald Plรถckinger, Hubert Trunkenpolz, Marc Coma, Carmelo Ezpeleta, Stefan Pierer, Pit Beirer, Wolfgang Srb, Heinz Kinigadner, Giuseppe Luongo and Viktor Sigl. Above,from the left, Marc Coma, Pit Beirer, Wolfgang Srb and Giuseppe Luongo.

All photos @Redinger L.

The opening of the new building of KTM Motorsport in Munderfing was celebrated in style. The brand new futuristic building contains all the departments of KTM, offroad as well as on-road.

KTM CEO Stefan Pierer and Head of Motorsport Pit Beirer welcomed a big number of factory riders, KTM legends

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like Heinz Kinigadner and Marc Coma, team managers, business partners as well as Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta, Youthstream President Giuseppe Luongo and FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb. Pit Beirer (KTM Motorsport Director), said: "It is a great honor for us to be here in the new KTM Motorsport Buil-

ding, and in the presence of the most important worldwide promoters, sponsors, team managers, the entire board of the KTM Group, WP and Pankl board members, chief designer Gerald Kiska, and of course, our factory riders and motorsport employees. A new building was inevitable after the integration of 'Husqvarna' three

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From the left, Marc Coma, Pit Beirer, Wolfgang Srb and Giuseppe Luongo. Below, from the left, Pit Beirer, Zach Osborne, Ryan Dungey, Jeffrey Herlings, Marvin Musquin and Tony Cairoli

years ago, and the decision to go into the MotoGP class.

For this concept, it was a matter of great concern to us that the entire KTM Motorsport family could strive for further success under one roof. A special thanks to the team from Architekturbüro Hofbauer from Wels for the brilliant planning. With Stefan Pierer as a great thinker and leader of the KTM Group, and with the passion of our employees, we will be able to pursue further major goals together and celebrate our future successes”.

Stefan Pierer (CEO KTM Group): “Motorsport is nothing without strong promo48

ters and loyal sponsors, so we are particularly pleased to welcome them all here on this special day. In 1992 KTM Racing was still a single small workshop, and successfully tackled Rally and Motocross alongside the initial niche of Enduro under the strong leadership of Heinz Kinigadner. Meanwhile, since Pit Beirer took over our motorsport in 2006, the team has grown to more than 300 employees worldwide and employs more than 60 factory riders. READY TO RACE and motor racing are a way of thinking that keeps the company fresh and drives our more than 3000 emplo-

yees in Mattighofen and Munderfing every day. Five percent of our annual sales flows into our motorsport and makes KTM Europe’s biggest sport motorcycle manufacturer with the ambitious goal of being on the podium all over the world in the coming years”.

"KTM is one of the most successful and respected manufacturers. The "Ready to Race" philosophy stands for numerous World and Manufacture titles. Cogratulations on behalf of FIM Europe for the outstanding achievements", stated Dr Wolfgang Srb.

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FIM Europe at the European Superbike and Moto2 at Valencia The final of the European Superbike and Moto2 held on 19 and 20 November at the Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana at Valencia (Spain) signed the second season of the new formula of the European Championship for the classes Moto2 and Superbike.

FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb and the Secretary General Alessandro Sambuco attended the event and this allowed to evaluate the sporting year and to discuss next

year’s season in a meeting with the CEV Director Oscar Gallardo.

At the end of the awards for the individual races and for the overall Championships Dr Wolfgang Srb stated: «I am very pleased with the results of the European Championships in Moto2 and Superbike.

The level is very high and the riders showed excellent sport.

The overall organization and

From the left, CEV Director Oscar Gallardo and FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb today at Valencia

promotion by Dorna is first class and I am looking forward to the cooperation in the future».

Congress of the Balkan Motorcycle Union On the occasion of the Congress of the Balkan Motorcycle Union in Sofia FIM Europe President Dr. Wolfgang Srb received a badge for the constant support towards Romanian Motorsport.

On the photo, from the left, Nicoleta Olariu, vicepresident Romanian Motorcycle Federation, DR Wolfgang Srb and Ionel Pascota, vicepresident Romanian Motorcycle Federation

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FIM Europe President, Dr Wolfgang Srb, at the Alpe Adria Motorcycle Union meeting of the Road Racing Commission

FIM Europe meets Alpe Adria Motorcycle Union On Saturday October 28th the meeting of the Alpe Adria Road Racing Commission was held in Wien, at the headquarters of the Triumph Club Wien. At the meeting President of FIM Europe Dr Wolfgang Srb was present, together with Alpe Adria Motorcycle Union President Luigi Favarato, the members of the Road Racing Commission and the promoter and organizer of the championship.

The Commission dealt with several points, both of sporting 50

and technical regulations, which have been developed and defined, while the topic of having mono-brand tires or not for the 2017 series is still under discussion after various proposals both from the Commission and from the promoter.

It was decided that this issue will be defined within a few days.

Alpe Adria Road Racing Commission Chairman Mr Martin Hejduk will inform all mem-

bers of the commission, Jacek Molik for Poland, Attila Nagy for Hungary, Robert Zikovic for Croatia, Ladislav Snegon for Slovakia, Dusana Harvanova for Czech Republic and the Head of Vintage Commission Peter Balaz, who were all present.

The last point discussed was the date and venue of the next General Assembly, which still has to be decided and will soon be communicated to the involved Federations.

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Triumph Club at Wien

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Award Ceremony of Triumph Club Wien, on November 10th.

The photo shows the board members of the Club (third from left: Hans Bahmer, former Safety Officer of the FIM Road Racing World Championship and living legend).

Photo: Christian Korzinek

FIM Europe at EICMA The International Motorcycle Show EICMA at Milan hosts every year around 600.000 spectators, making it the most important motorcycle fair in Europe, besides being the most ancient one, being born 102 years ago.

The exhibition sees the presence of the most important Motorcycles and Accessories Manufacturers, not only from

Europe but from all over the world.

Besides to all production models and many sports bikes show in a specific large area, attention has been given also to road safety, with different display from both companies and institutions. In particular the Italian Road Police made a presentation of all their activities in favour of reducing

the number of road accidents, “from motorcyclists to motorcyclists”.

Among their activities, the demonstrations with special sunglasses which simulate the negative effects of alcohol, the use of a riding simulator, the presence of instructors.

FIM Europe 2nd Deputy President Silvio Manicardi was at EICMA. «It was interesting to see and understand the different trends of future motorcycling and I very much appreciated all the efforts which are being made to create a better, safer environment for the users of powered two-wheelers», stated Manicardi.

From the left, Anna Lisa Valleriani, Road Police Chief Commissioner, Silvio Manicardi, FIM Europe Vice President and Barbara Barra, Road Police 1st Executive 51

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FIM Europe at FMI Presidential elections in Rome FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb was a firstorder guest today at the FMI General Assembly for the election of the new President of the Italian Federation.

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Dr Srb received a special award by FMI outgoing President Paolo Sesti, for his activity in the world of motorcycling. “From 1996, when Paolo Sesti became president of

the FMI, Italy has really being living a story of innovation, passion, motorcycles and riders. In 1996 Valentino Rossi started winning, and he still does, and Italian riders are

FIM Europe Mag 6/2016

FIM EUROPE INSIDE

Dr Wolfgang Srb with the three candidates to the FMI Presidence, a few minutes before the start of the FMI General Assembly. From the left, Giovanni Copioli, who was elected as new President of FMI, Andrea Vignozzi and Fabio Larcieri

strong in many disciplines: besides road racing, especially in motocross, with Tony Cairoli and Kiara Fontanesi, and with Motocross of Nations in Italy, where “Nessun Dorma” by Pavarotti was FIM Europe Mag 6/2016

the opening hymn every morning at 8.00.

“I can say that at an international level FMI is well considered and its requests and considerations are always listened to.

But beyond sports, the

mission of Federations is also road safety, attention to environment, touring activities, training and education and of all this we talked two weeks ago in our General Assembly in Berlin. So the past 20 years were full of success for FMI and now I want to wish good luck to new FMI President, Giovanni Copioli”, concluded Dr Wolfgang Srb.

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Above, the prize-giving from FMI outgoing President Paolo Sesti Below, FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb with Giovanni Malagò, CONI President

FIM EUROPE INSIDE

Above, the speech of FIM Europe President Dr Wolfgang Srb Below, with Francesco Zerbi, former FIM President and actually FMI honorary President

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Focus on: Track Racing Commission The Track Racing Commission sion also caters for Youth ra(TRC) of FIM Europe covers a cing with youngsters starting wide range of motorcycle off at the age of 10 years old, gairoad sport, which goes from ning their first experience of Speedway to Ice Speedway and competing in a European Grass Track. Within two of championship event. these disciplines, the Commis56

Speedway is of course the jewel in the crown of the TRC, and with the input of promoter One Sport Media, the Speedway Euro Championship (SEC) is now receiving high levels of exposure via satellite TV coveFIM Europe Mag 6/2016

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rage by Eurosport. There is also a FIM Europe Pairs Speedway championship – which has become a very competitive event (with lots of national pride at stake) for those nations taking part.

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To support the development of with two European Youth Speyoung Speedway riders across edway championships, 250cc Europe, the TRC also supports and 85cc, which is aimed at an Under 21 Individual Speed- being the breeding ground for way championship as well as the next generation of Speedan U21 Team championship. way riders.

This is further underpinned 57

In all photos, 2016 FIM Europe SEC Champion Nicki Pedersen.

Photos: Jarek Pabijan

The exceptionally dangerous sport of Ice Speedway also comes under the remit of the TRC, and it is within this sport that you see the riders competing centimetres away from one another with 28 mm spikes in their tyres – a sport not 58

suitable to the faint hearted.

With recent changes in the winter climate it is becoming much harder for clubs in Germany and Austria to stage these events, so the majority of European Ice Speedway is held in Russia.

Grass Track is similar to Speedway, but as the name suggests the sport is predominantly raced on a grass surface (as opposed to Speedway which is on a shale/dirt type surface). Within the European Individual FIM Europe Mag 6/2016

Grass Track championships, a percentage of the riders are also professional Speedway riders, but in recent years riders who specialise in riding purely Grass Track are just as competitive, if not better than some of their Speedway based competitors. Within this discipline, there is also a Sidecar class (500cc) which again is very competitive with teams from Denmark, France, Germany, Holland and the UK racing in events across Europe most weekends throughout the season.

Similar to Speedway, the TRC also supports youth development in Grass Track with a European 125cc Youth Track Racing championship for youngsters aged from 10 through to 16 years of age.

In order to organise and co-ordinate all these various chamFIM Europe Mag 6/2016

pionships events, the TRC is led by its Chairman Piotr Szymanski.

Piotr heads up a large commission (15 members) compared to some others, but each member is then coopted onto a Wo r k i n g Group within the TRC, where his or her specific skills and knowledge is used to support and further develop that particular area of track racing.

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PI OT R SZ YMA NSK I Piotr started his involvement with FIM Europe in 2010 – formally the UEM – when he became a member of the FIM Europe TRC. A year later he was invited to join the FIM CCP (Track Racing Commission) and in 2013 he was offered a place within the CCP Bureau. The following year (2014) he was nominated to take over the Chairmanship of the FIM Europe TRC. «I really love my activities within FIM Europe, this work helps me to relax», Piotr commented. «Meeting similar, likeminded people, who share the same love and dedication to our fantastic sport is a wonderful experience. We can spend hours discussing the future direction of motorcycling – as well as the history of the sport, which is a passion of mine. I am a collector of Speedway race programmes as well as of any publications relating to the sport, as the history of Speedway is also a hobby of mine. I am lucky that lately the editors in Poland have fallen in love with Speedway so I’ve had the opportunity to read the autobiography of Marek Cieślak, (the Polish Speedway team coach), the book by

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Zenon Plech, (once runner up in the Speedway World championship, as well as the extraordinary "Testament of the Devil" by Tomasz Gollob and Darek Ostafiński».

Piotr has been addicted to Speedway since 1983, while his first ever live experience with the sport had taken place four years earlier – he remembers well the first successes of the ‘Grand Master’ Tomaz Gollob at the beginning of Gollob’s rapid rise to fame.

Piotr has been a member of GKSŻ (the Speedway Commission within the PZM) for many years and since 2006 he has been leading the commission as its Chairman.

During the same year he became a member of the Managing Board of the PZM – a role he is still involved in today. He recalls «it was obvious from the beginning that either aviation or Spe-

edway would be my passion and I have a number of books on air forces involved in World War II, which I do have to confess is my second hobby».

Piotr Szymanski graduated in history at the University of A. Mickiewicz in Poznań, where he now runs private business within financing services. The SEC series is one of many ideas he introduced into Speedway, and having recently officiated at his first Grass Track event (a discipline almost unknown in Poland), this is another area of Track Racing that has really impressed him.

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SUSA NNE HÜ TTING ER Susanne has been a member of the FIM Europe Track Racing Commission (TRC) since 2006, and attended her first commission meeting as an observer in 2005.

She has an extensive 'pedigree' in Track Racing including being a founder member of FIM Women Commission since 2006, as well as being an experienced Referee for both the FIM Europe and the FIM, covering various disciplines including Speedway, Grass Track (Individual and Sidecars), as well as Ice Speedway.

The highlight of Susanne's 'motorcycling career' this season was refereeing at one of the European Speedway Championship (SEC) Final's at Güstrow in Germany, and then being appointed Jury President in for the final round at Rybnik in Poland.

Amongst her other accomplishments, Susanne is a Board member of her national federation – the OAMTC (and the first female to do so since 2009), as well as being Chairman of the OAMTC's Track Racing Commission. She has worked with a number of motorcycle clubs in Austria supporting them in numerous roles including acting as Clerk of the Course.

Susanne commented 'Track Racing has been a part of my life for nearly 30 years now. «I love to be involved and work with my colleagues on the FIM Europe TRC to create new rules that will benefit the sport or modify existing rules to further improve the sport for competitors within Europe. Working with kids is the most interesting part of motorsport for me, and of course I´m a big fan of Ice Speedway, as this surely must be the most spectacular area of Track Racing we have».

In her 'normal life' Susanne has a young daughter and a son – both interested in motorsport and both riding motorcycles.

«We love travelling the world and seeing different cultures and meeting different people. I´m very happy to be member of FIM Europe for such a long time, and I am able to support Track Racing with my work. I´m currently the Vice President of the Track Racing Commission and my key responsibilities are the administrative support as well as being the Group Leader of the Ice Speedway Working Group».

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D I C K I E S TA F F Dickie has been involved in Track Racing for well over 40 years, commencing as a youth rider in the UK at the age of 13. His motorcycling career has seen him involved as a rider, then race mechanic for five times World Long Track Champion Simon Wigg, and then as a co-promoter of the high profile ‘International Ace of Aces’ Grass Tracks in England during the 80's and 90's.

As a result of his involvement with his local club, Dickie became a member of the English federations (ACU) Track Racing Committee in 1995, and six years ago became Vice Chairman.

At the beginning of this year Dickie took over the Chairmanship from Peter Gregory, who was retiring from his involvement in motorcycling having served many years with the ACU. Dickie’s role within the ACU also involves him being a member of the Board of Directors, something that he feels he will develop further into as he gains more experience.

Dickie is regularly seen at Long Track and Grass Track events around Europe where he acts as ACU Delegate for English riders competing in FIM World Championship events.

Dickie is one of the longest serving members of the FIM Europe TRC – joining in 2001 – and has been an active member of the Commission, supporting his colleagues with the drafting of rules and other supporting documentation to ensure a high standard of English is achieved in everything relevant to FIM Europe Track Racing. During his time with

the FIM Europe TRC, Dickie has been Jury President at a number of Individual and Sidecar Grass Track championship Finals around Europe, as well as being involved in some Under 21 and Youth Speedway events in previous years. As part of his own personal development Dickie would now like to gain more experience with FIM Europe Speedway championship events so that he can support Piotr, Susanne and Krister with their workload.

«I have been involved in the whole spectrum of Track Racing for most of my life», said Dickie recently. «And I know that I am now at a point where I can work with the other Commission members to further develop this wonderful sport. I also feel that it is very important that the TRC has a good interface with both the riders as well as the organisers, and it’s essential that they feel comfortable in approaching us to discuss any aspect of sport… after all without these two groups of people we have no sport».

Dickie currently has two roles within the FIM Europe TRC, one as Group Leader for

the review and development of the Track Racing rules and supporting documentation, and the other as a member of the three man Grass Track Working Group. «It is my view that the FIM Europe Track Racing rules should be simply to understand and easy follow, and hopefully with my knowledge of the English language I’m confident this is something we are improving year on year», he said.

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KRISTER G ARD ELL

Krister is based in Sweden, where he rode competitive Speedway from 1982 to 1995, mostly for Kumla Indianerna, but he also raced in Danish and Norwegian league and international meetings.

He has been a member of the FIM Europe TRC since 2008 and he is also a member of the FIM Europe Speedway Euro Championship (SEC) Bureau, as well as being Group Leader for the Safety and Track Inspection Working Group.

When he retired from racing, the Swedish Federation (SVEMO) invited Krister to attend a Referee’s seminar, where he duly passed the examination which gave

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the start to his ‘journey’ as a Track Racing official.

About twenty years later he is still involved in refereeing in Sweden, of which the past nineteen years he has also been ‘pressing the button’ at World and European championship events for the FIM and FIM Europe. Krister is keen to point out that he has also been an International Clerk of Course for seventeen years, where he’s been involved in organising and supporting Swedish clubs to promote both FIM and FIM Europe meetings.

Krister commented: «I have been in the fortunate position of being able to

travel around the world in the pursuit of my hobby and interest in Track Racing, and as a result I have met some wonderful people and have been to some interesting places. Not all places were capital cities, but all of them had a common interest in hosting great motorcycle events».

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NIKOLAI KRASNIKO V There aren’t many sporting commissions within FIM Europe that can boast that one of its members is an eight times Individual World Champion, but this is something the FIM Europe TRC can boast about with Nikolai Krasnikov being an integral member of the team.

Added to his numerous world individual titles achieved in the very hard sport of Ice Speedway, he was also a member of the Russian Ice Speedway team, who won the World Team championship in 2004 through to 2013, 2015 and 2016: Nikolai didn’t race in the team in 2014. He is also a multi Russian National Champion, as well as European Champion so it will come as no surprise that he is an invaluable member of the Ice Racing Working Group.

Nikolai, who is a man of few words, said: «Being a member of the FIM Europe TRC is a new experience for me. However my colleagues on the commission are helpful and supportive, and I’m planning on being able to put the experience I’ve gained in racing into good use for the future development and support of Ice Speedway across Europe».

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GREGOR ARNšEK Gregor Arnšek lives in Slovenia, and is one of the new members of the FIM Europe Track Racing Commission – joining in 2012 – where he is a member of the Youth and Development Working Group.

Gregor is currently the Vice President of AMD Krško Speedway Club and is a member of the Latvian Federation (AMZS) Speedway commission.

«Speedway has been in my family since as far back as I can remember. They say there is no half way in Speedway, you either love it or have absolutely no feeling for the sport. I tend to agree and I willingly to admit that I cannot imagine my life without it», he said recently.

«In Slovenia, Speedway has a long tradition… my Club, AMD Krško, will celebrate its 70th anniversary next year, and we

are very proud of this achievement, as in recent years a number of clubs around Europe have had to close their doors and shut up shop. We have managed to survive by organising events on an international level. AMD Krsko is a small club meaning that the money we need to survive on, we have to collect ourselves. If you consider that we have been one of the FIM Speedway Grand Prix organisers for eleven years, this shows the dedication and hard work of everyone involved at the club. It is one of my biggest goals to promote Speedway in Europe, and to encourage all Speedway clubs to keep organising events and to share their experiences, good or bad. I feel that communication amongst the club members is just as important as communication among different clubs.

Only then can we establish a solid base for Speedway to grow and develop, which in turn will create more spectators… because as we all know, it’s the spectators that are the heart and soul of every Speedway event».

It’s interesting to note that Gregor feels he is not a man of many words, but he focuses on working hard to get the job done - proof of which are the eleven successfully organised Slovenian FIM Speedway events… he says that his motivation is that «work is a challenge not a burden!»

BJARNE FJORD TH OMSEN Bjarne hails from Vejen in Denmark and he has been a member of the FIM Europe TRC for the past ten years, joining in 2006.

He has an extensive knowledge and involvement in Speedway since he started back in 1980, as Team Manager of the famous Holsted Speedway club, and has also been a member of the Board for the past fourteen years.

As his interest in the sport grew, he then became a member of the board for Danish Speedway, a role he un65

dertook for eight years (six of which he was Chairman).

In 1994, Bjarne became a member of the Board for the Danish federation (the DMU), a position he undertook for six years, and more recently Bjarne became an accountant for the DMU.

Bjarne is the Group Leader for the Youth and Development Working Group of the FIM Europe TRC where he is ably supported by two other colleagues. «As in all areas of sport – youth riders are the next generation of competi-

tors, and it is important that we support their development by offering them the opportunity of riding in well organised European championship events», he said.

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GIUSEPPE GRANDI

Giuseppe is based in Italy, and has followed Speedway ever since he was a child, when at the grand age of four years old, his father took him to watch his first ever meeting.

He became a Speedway Referee for the Italian Federation (FMI) in 2004, eventually progressing through to become a FIM Referee in 2013. He became a member of the FIM Europe TRC the following year, where he is now involved in both the Speedway and Rules Working Groups. ÂŤMy aim as part of the TRC is to support the involvement of new young competitors across Europe riding Speedway, and to help ro make the FIM Europe Track Racing rules easy to understand and followÂť, he said recently.

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PETR MORA VEC

Petr comes from Pardubice in the Czech Republic, where he started working with the Par-

dubice Speedway club in 1991.

Through his involvement with the club during the past twentyfive years, he has helped to organise the oldest Speedway event in the world, - the Czech Golden Helmet. The club nominated him to become involved in the development of Speedway within Czech Republic and he became Chairman of the Union in 2005. As one of the Czech Republic’s most knowledgeable people within the sport, Petr has been a member of the FIM and FIM Europe Track Racing Commissions since 2013.

In an interview he recently identified three key objectives he has for the future: (1) the return of young people back into the sport, (2) to help the organisers in the preparation of good safe speedway events, and (3) to support the promotion of Speedway, which in turn will help to increase spectator attendance. Not surprisingly, Petr is a member of the TRC’s Speedway Working Group.

M AT TI POY S A Matti is a former rider who comes from Finland. He has twentysix years of experience of racing motorcycles in Speedway, Long Track and Ice Racing, and during this time he also covered various duties and responsibilities for his home club in Kuusankosk – where he was also Chairman for seventeen years.

From 1994 – 2006 Matti was the Finnish Federations (SML) Track Racing Commission Chairman, and after stepping down from that role he then developed a relationship with the Latvian federation (LaMFS) where at the

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moment he assists the federation at FIM and FIM Europe meetings as Clerk of the Course.

As a result of his involvement in the sport, Matti currently holds a FIM Clerk of the Course licence as well as a National Referees licence, in addition to being a Super License Clerk of the Course holder for Track Racing. He has been a member of the FIM Europe TRC since 2010, and is currently a member of the three man Working Group for Ice Racing.

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FRANK ZIE GLE R «Speedway ist mein Leben» («Speedway is my life») was the title of a book, written

by Germany’s most famous Long Track and Speedway rider – Egon Müller. In 1981 when Müller’s career was at its highest, this book was the inspiration for Frank to start as a young and enthusiastic rider competing in both Grass Track and Speedway meetings in his native Germany.

Looking back over the past thirty six years with his involvement in Track Racing, Frank commented «I’m pretty sure that I have undertaken almost every possible role within our sport: at first I started as a rider, then I became mechanic and tuner, then as my understanding of the

sport became greater, I became a Clerk of the Course and then took on the role of being an organiser and eventually Club Presiden»t. However Frank’s progression did not end there, as he then became a Referee and Official for the German Federation (the DMSB), which then took him onto refereeing appointments for both FIM and FIM Europe.

«Despite the fascination that the sport holds for me», he continued, «I have also seen how close it is between victory and defeat…I´ve seen champions rising up and then just as quickly I’ve seen them leaving the stage forever’. As in real life, on one hand our sport can create wonderful friendships, but on the other it can be a platform for political intrigue. However, I would say that I am thankful for every single experience I’ve encountered over the years and wouldn´t want to have missed one single moment».

As identified above, Frank has a vast array of experience

within Track Racing, and in 2004, he became member of the FIM Europe TRC. It was during the latter part of TRC Chairman Andrzej Grodzki’s time in office that Frank became Vice Chairman, and then when Grodzki retired from the role, Frank became TRC Chairman – a position he held until 2014. «It was during this time as Chairman that I was proud to have the opportunity to breathe new life into the Speedway European Championship (SEC) working closely together with its new promoter – One Sport Media. SEC has developed into one of the sport’s most important championships, and with the Final rounds being staged in four different Speedway stadiums around Europe, it makes for an exciting series for spectators and riders alike. Looking ahead, I´d like to put back into our sport a part of what I´ve received and to further support international Speedway wherever I can».

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There are four other members of the FIM Europe TRC: Christian Bouin (from France) Group Leader of the Grass Track Working Group, Gyorgy Senyei (Hungary) who is a member of the Rules Working Group, Darija Pavlic (Croatia) Youth and Development Working Group, and Sergey Lyatosinskyy (Ukraine), Safety and Track Inspection Working Group.

From the top, Sergey Lyatosinskyy, Marek Wojaczek, Gyorgy Senyei and Jakob Alkema, TRC Observer.

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Touring with FIM Europe

by Fiammetta La Guidara

Besides FIM Europe Club, which organizes structured touring events for FIM Europe officials, isolated touring meetings among members of various Federations usually happen as a simple consequence of the fact that some motorcyclist officials gather together for

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business reasons, they all have some spare time at their disposal and the weather is fine, even if it is already Autumn. This is what it happened last October 20th, when Alessandro Sambuco gathered some friends for a meeting with their motorcycles in Civitavecchia, to watch the spectacular view of the off-season seaside.

The group of participant to the tour in Civitavecchia, near Rome. Below, Alessandro Sambuco and FIM Europe Vice President Martin de Graaff.

“It’s not the first time I enjoy a tour in Italywith people like them and it’s very nice to be again with them. It’s very well organized and it’s remarkable to be here. I arrived by plane, but I’m happy to use a motorbike by Romeo’s family”, said Martin de Graaff. “I like travelling by bike because of the sense of freedom it gives, the changing landscapes, the nice roads, and the people you meet and you can share your experience with. I always enjoy my rides”.

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Gianfranco D’Orazi, member of the Judicial Panel. Among his tens of motorcycle tours, in 1966 he went from Rieti to Sweden riding a Lambretta.

In the other page, from the top, Maurizio Battaglia, former president of Moto Club Roma and a deep esteemer of travels with the Vespas of his collection. In the centre Fabrizio Festuccia, a “friend” of the group, reached also Turkey and Mo72

rocco by motorcycle. Aside, Rodolfo Romeo, FIM Europe Chairman of the Judicial Panel. “The person who probably influenced me most in my passion for travelling by motorbike was my Latin and Greek teacher”, recalls Romeo. “He was an aged priest and he often told us about his journeys riding a Vespa in the Mediterranean basin, up to the Holy Land”.

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Above, the group of the participants to the tour. Below, Giancarlo Babbucci, former president of Moto Club Roma. “I cannot imagine travelling without my motorbike”, he stated.

“I celebrated my 60th birthday in the Egyptian desert and my 70th at Dakar, which I reached travelling through Morocco and Mauritania”.

In the other page, Angelo Lolli, a friend of the group and a big motorcycle traveller.

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