First picture, from right to left: Jorge Viegas (FIM President), Antonio Sanz (Consejero de Presidencia de la Junta de Andalucía), Maria José Garcia-Pelayo Jurado (Mayor of Jerez de la Frontera) , Carmelo Ezpeleta (Dorna CEO) and Lin Jarvis (Managing Director at Yamaha Motor Racing S.r.l) © PSP
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The Official Presentation for the inaugural FIM Intercontinental Games was held at the Gran Premio Estrella Galicia 0,0 de España, on Saturday (27 April) at the Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto in Andalusia, Spain.
A biennial event which will be named after the city in which it takes place, the FIM Intercontinental Games Jerez 2024 will play a major role in the FIM’s one-hundred-and-twentieth anniversary celebrations this year and be staged at the iconic Spanish circuit on 30 November and 1 December.
Among those attending the Official Presentation were FIM President Jorge Viegas, Antonio Sanz (Consejero de Presidencia de la Junta de Andalucía), Mayor of Jerez de la Frontera Maria José Garcia-Pelayo Jurado, Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta and Lin Jarvis (Managing Director at Yamaha Motor Racing S.r.l).
First proposed to the FIM Board of Directors by FIM President Jorge Viegas, the FIM Intercontinental Games will bring together the six FIM Continental Unions (CONU) of Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, Latin America and Oceania, providing an outstanding international platform for young and experienced riders.
The inaugural FIM Intercontinental Continental Games will be dedicated to circuit racing- Supersport and Supersport 300 classes – although this will expand to include other disciplines (Motocross and Enduro) as the event becomes established – with Yamaha Europe providing R7 and R3 machines as the Official Partner. All motorcycles will have bespoke CONU colour liveries.
Dunlop will be the official tyre supplier and will also provide its racing service throughout the competition, while BETA UTENSILI will support the FIM Continental Unions with their professional mechanical tools and toolboxes.
Riders will wear their CONU team colours with electronic airbag suits and gloves supplied by SPIDI, boots by Xpd, while Airoh will provide all riders with their FIM Racing homologated GP 800 helmets and Panta Racing Fuel as the official supplier of fuel.
This new competition will benefit from exceptional TV coverage thanks to the support of the FIM circuit racing promoters Dorna who will carry out the TV production and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Sports Europe which will ensure broadcasting on their digital platforms.
Each Continental Union will select four riders including at least one woman per class who may come from the FIM Women's Circuit Racing World Championship. Each team will be able to select another rider participating in an FIM World Championship who will be nominated as team captain.
In 2024, the competition will take place over four races, two per class: R7 and R3. The points awarded to each rider based on their ranking will be added to the points of the other team members to determine which of the six FIM Continental Unions will be the first to win the Games.
FIM President Jorge Viegas stated: “In this, the FIM’s one-hundred-and-twentieth anniversary year, it is incredibly exciting to be launching the FIM Intercontinental Games that will bring together all six FIM Continental Unions. It is a landmark competition that I have been keen to see happen since I first proposed it twenty-two years ago and I am delighted that we will finally see the first edition come to life later this year. I would like to especially thank Yamaha Europe, the city of Jerez, Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto, Dorna, WBD Sports Europe, Dunlop, SPIDI, Xpd, Airoh, Beta, Panta and everyone involved in making this incredible event possible.”
Mayor of Jerez de la Frontera Maria José Garcia-Pelayo Jurado: “The FIM Intercontinental Games are a great opportunity for the Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto. We will be the first circuit to host this event in which all six FIM Continental Unions will participate. This event further fills the circuit's packed schedule, at a very important time towards the end of the year. The FIM Intercontinental Games will take place just 7 days before the Circuito Jerez-Ángel Nieto celebrates its 99th anniversary and will be the gateway to the 40th anniversary of the Jerez circuit which we will commemorate precisely in 2025.”
Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta: “We’re very happy to be part of this new project and partner the first ever Intercontinental Games. It’s testament to the sport’s history and its future that, even as the FIM celebrates 120 years, there is still room to build a new part of its legacy. We look forward to seeing the first event here at Jerez, an iconic venue, and congratulate the FIM on the project and this incredible milestone.”
Managing Director at Yamaha Motor Racing S.r.l, Lin Jarvis concluded: “First of all, I would like to congratulate the FIM on their one-hundred-and-twentieth anniversary – an impressive milestone. Yamaha and the FIM share a close working relationship. Over the years, motorcycle sports across all disciplines have grown and prospered under the FIM's guidance: health & safety, technical innovation, inclusivity, and the rise in popularity of motorcycle racing are just a few areas that are consistently being worked on.
The launch of the FIM Intercontinental Games shows how the powered-two-wheelers motorsport sector keeps developing to provide new opportunities to all competitors to strive for success and reach new levels, while providing entertaining racing for the fans.
The FIM Intercontinental Games format is exciting in many aspects: the inclusion of women, the opportunity to discover upcoming racing talent, the novelty of various bikes and racing disciplines in one championship, and the necessity of teamwork for teams to get ahead.
Yamaha is proud to support the FIM right from the start in this endeavour by providing R7 and R3 bikes to help the FIM build a fresh and thrilling racing series.”
Download FIM InterContinental Games Presentation
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