Dubai will have the distinction of hosting the first FIA Spring Meeting in the region, the International Club Conference Dubai 2010, when delegates representing 130 national motoring and sporting bodies gather to mark the opening of the four-day conference on April 12.
The Palace – The Old Town hotel located on Emaar Boulevard, The Old Town Island in Downtown Dubai will be the conference venue.
The annual spring meeting is being hosted away from Europe and in the Middle East for the first time.
The FIA, founded in 1904, with headquarters in Paris, is the governing body for world motor sport and the federation of the world’s leading motoring organisations, bringing together 219 national motoring and sporting bodies (clubs) from 130 countries on five continents.
The clubs represent over 100 million motorists and their families worldwide and delegates will confer on a wide-range of topics from roadside assistance, medical & travel services, traffic information and customs & immigration procedures that road users must follow when driving across borders, among other issues.
FIA Vice President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who is also President of the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE (ATCUAE), the national motor sport and motoring authority (ASN/club) here in the UAE, extended a warm welcome to the delegates on the eve of the four-day conference.
Sulayem noted that ever since the decision to award Dubai the host city status was taken exactly a year ago, much has changed in terms of infrastructure and the most technologically advanced amenities that the Emirate has to offer.
Admitting that it was no small task getting ready for the event bearing in mind the ATCUAE’s packed calendar over the last 12 months, Sulayem said he is delighted to know that everything is in place to “welcome our guests from virtually every corner of the planet.”
“Of course the logistics involved are huge. But we are not new to organizing events of such a magnitude,” Sulayem said, adding: “Our partners such as the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, Emaar, Dubai Convention Bureau, the Roads & Transport Authority, and every arm of the Dubai Government has made available all resources at their disposal to further enhance Dubai and the UAE’s image internationally.
“Dubai is known worldwide for its many firsts. This is another: Being host to the first FIA Spring Meeting in the region,” Sulayem concluded.
