Home » Sports » Motor Racing
FIA’s lukewarm response to idea of female drivers
Print Edition
MOTOR sport’s governing body has given a lukewarm response to Bernie Ecclestone’s suggestion that Formula One teams should launch a championship series for female drivers.
“The idea of an all-women competition is not something we would dismiss without proper debate and research,” former rally driver Michele Mouton, president of the FIA’s commission for women in motorsport, said. “But from my own experience as a competitor, I truly believe women want to compete on an equal level with their male counterparts. They have proved through the decades that it is possible, even if only a few.”
In comments reported in British media, Ecclestone said “a showcase” championship for women “would attract a lot of attention and publicity and probably a lot of sponsors.”
Mouton noted: “Motor sport is just one of three sports, including sailing and horse-riding, where men and women compete alongside one another with the same rules and classifications. This level playing field provides a real indicator of performance and pushes athletes to be the best in the world, regardless of gender. We have to continue promoting the fact that motor sport is open to all, with the same prospects and potential to succeed.”
The statement was more tempered than an earlier email Mouton sent. In that, she wrote: “Maybe when he sees the F1 audience decreasing he thinks about solutions and about women only for the show!”
“I am annoyed and very disappointed!” she wrote.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
