Qatar rolls out the red carpet for FIA General Assembly
Qatar will host the annual FIA General Assembly starting today until December 5 in the capital Doha, the highlight being the prize-giving ceremony where all 2014 champions will be honoured.
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The general assembly meetings will run from today until Wednesday where members will take up pending issues and vote on various matters that will be tabled, including changes to sporting regulations of the various championships.
Of importance to the region will be the decision to expand the Middle East Rally Championship (MERC) from the current six rounds to nine, with Abu Dhabi, Oman and Iran all hosting trial rounds over the last couple of months.
According to FIA sources, a decision on the expansion of the MERC will in all likelihood be voted upon on December 3.
The ceremony to honour the 2014 podium toppers will get under way on December 4 with a Prize- Giving Challenge where the champions and guests will take part in a fun competition at the Katara karting track designed by Herman Tilke, which is located in the Prize- Giving Village.
This challenge will be overseen by F1 race director Charlie Whiting. Organisers say over 30 drivers have confirmed their participation, including Daniel Ricciardo, Sebastien Loeb and Petter Solberg.
A new conference of the 2014 winners, which will provide an unique opportunity to see champions from the greatest motor sport disciplines side-by-side all at the same time, has been scheduled for December 5.
For the first time in FIA history, the prize-giving ceremony will be broadcast live on beIN Sports, while fans can follow the red carpet event on Twitter using the hashtag #FIAPrizeGiving.
The winners of the 2014 FIA Personality of the Year and 2014 FIA Action of the Year awards will be unveiled the same evening, as will the brand-new FIA Rookie of the Year award and FIA Pole Position trophy winner.
Meanwhile, FIA president Jean Todt arrived in Doha late last night and was received at the Hamad International Airport by Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation boss Nasser Khalifa Al Attiyah and general assembly members.
