2012 FIM General Assembly meets in Monte-Carlo The FIM General Assembly met at the Sporting-Monte-Carlo in Monaco, on 1 December. There were 76 member Federations present out of a total of 107. The FIM President Vito Ippolito opened the meeting by pointing out that although the economic crisis had caused considerable hardship in a number of countries and had also impacted the FIM, it had also created opportunities for the FIM to develop and expand the geographical scope of its championships. He stressed that in order to make its activities sustainable, the FIM had to be a strong but inclusive organisation, working together with its partners and practising good governance at all levels. The FIM President urged the members to help the FIM to move forward in the right direction: “Every major change shakes up our convictions and our habits. In the past we had the option to stay as we were. Today, we have it no longer. We are obliged to change. That is why we are asking you to carry on working in this direction with conviction in order for the benefit of the FIM of today and for future generations of sportsmen and sportswomen.” The FIM General Assembly accepted applications for membership by the Palestinian Motor Sport and Motorcycle Federation (PMSMF) and the Fédération Motocycliste de Côte d’Ivoire (FMCI), which replaces the FISAM. From 1 January 2013, the FIM will therefore have 108 affiliated members. The FIM approved a new championship, the FIM Speedway World League, with six teams representing three Speedway leagues. Also, from 2013, the FIM Youth Trial Cup 125cc will go under the name of the “FIM Trial Cup 125cc”. Messrs Rob Rasor (AMA-USA) and Juan Moreta (RFME-SPA) were re-elected to the FIM Board of Directors and Mr Jorgen Bitsch (DMU-DEN) was elected to the third vacant position. Mr Stefan Steinle (DMSB-GER) was appointed member of the International Commission of Judges (CJI). During the General Assembly, the FIM welcomed the UEM’s amendment to its Statutes to change its name officially to FIM EUROPE in line with the other Continental Unions FIM AFRICA, FIM ASIA, FIM LATIN AMERICA, FIM NORTH AMERICA and FIM OCEANIA. The FIM awarded the Nicolas Rodil del Valle Gold Medal to Mr Guy Maître, who served as FIM Secretary General and then FIM CEO for 33 years, and the Nicolas Rodil del Valle Silver Medal to Mrs Anne-Marie Gerber who served the FIM in various capacities for 32 years. The FIM General Assembly also presented the following national Federations with commemorative plates to mark the celebration of major anniversaries in 2012: Kazakhstan (AMFK): 20th Ukraine (FMU): 20th Panama (UPM) : 20th Liechtenstein (LMV): 30th Zimbabwe (ZMSF): 50th Bahrain (BAMF): 60th Guatemala (FNMG): 60th Malaysia (AAM): 80th Finland (SML): 90th Luxembourg (MUL): 90th Belgium: 100th Ireland: 110th The next meeting of the FIM General Assembly will take place on 30 November 2013. The venue will be announced in the second quarter of 2013.