DUBAI — Dr. Mohammed Ben Sulayem, President of the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE, has been elected to the FIM Affiliation Board Committee that has a key role in international motorcycling. His appointment was recently announced by the FIM, the International Motorcycling Federation, which governs the six main motorcycle-racing disciplines encompassing 65 world championships. The Affiliation Board Committee's main role is to appoint and oversee the national motorcycle federations which run international motorcycling worldwide to the standards laid down by the FIM. Sulayem, who took charge of the ATCUAE in 2006, played an important role last year in persuading the FIM to welcome the Palestinian Motor Sport and Motorcycle Federation into its fold. He also had an influential part last year in the overhaul of the Arab Motorcycle Federation to raise the standard and safety levels of the regional bike racing. One of the first decisions of the revamped AMF was to restrict membership to motorcycle bodies officially recognized by the FIM in order to secure a better future for the sport in the region. Sulayem's official links to international motorcycle sport go back to 1995 when he secured a place for the UAE in the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship through the UAE Desert Challenge, which he had launched four years earlier. Now known as the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, the event annually attracts the world's top riders to the UAE. The 23rd edition will take place from April 4-11. The FIM is the motorcycling equivalent of the FIA, motorsport's world governing body, of which Sulayem is the Vice President for Sport.
