Following the announcement of the retirement of the current FIM CEO, Guy Maitre in early January 2012, a search has been initiated to replace him and it is with great pleasure that the FIM President and the Board of Directors inform of the decision to appoint Mr Stéphane Desprez. Mr Desprez will join the FIM as Deputy CEO in October 2011 until early January 2012 when he will take over from Guy Maitre as CEO. Born in 1966 in Nancy, France, Stéphane Desprez is a graduate of ENSAM Paris (MS Engineering) and of Purdue University (MBA Strategy & Finance) in West Lafayette (IN, USA). He started his professional career in France as a Consultant and Project Manager and then moved to Houston (Texas, USA), to take in charge the General Management of Pro-Metal a US subsidiary of CFF. He returned to France in 1999 to take the position of Director of Operations of a Sports Event Management company, for which he also acted as Tournament Director of the Air France Rugby Sevens, and initiated a Rugby Sevens Tour which was the precursor of the IRB Sevens Tour. In 2004, he started with the early days of the organising committee of the Rugby World Cup 2007 as Head of Planning, and then joined the Executive Committee as Director of Competition. Following two years of freelance assignments, Stéphane Desprez was appointed Secretary General of the Fédération Internationale de l’Aéronautique (FAI) in January 2010. Vito Ippolito said: “The FIM will be facing new challenges in the coming years and the corporate and sport management skills and experience Stéphane Desprez has gained during his professional career will be an asset for the FIM in order to meet the ambitious objectives we have set up in our Vision 2020.” Guy Maitre commented: “I would like to warmly welcome Stéphane on board and I wish him the best of success as my future successor following my retirement in a few months time. I look forward to introducing him within the FIM family and sharing with him my own experience of motorcycling”. Stéphane Desprez added: “I am honored to have been appointed to succeed to Guy, and to have the opportunity to participate to the implementation of the 2020 FIM Vision and Strategic Framework. I ride my motorcycle every day since 1988, so I am really eager to join the FIM family and to contribute to its expansion and development, along with the FIM Board of Directors and the FIM Administration”.