FIA Releases Latest Safety Guidelines for Rally

In its bid to heighten safety measures but still maintain the excitement for the sport, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the global governing body for motorsport, recently released the latest set of guidelines for Rally.

FIA President Jean Todt said that the new FIA Rally Safety Guidelines are the culmination of an intensive period of detailed analysis and consultation regarding the safe running of FIA rally events around the world.

According to Todt, the Safety and Rally departments have worked in close collaboration with members of the FIA Closed Road Commission and the FIA Rally Commission to gather the latest best practice from the FIA World Rally Championship, in a format that is also relevant to FIA Regional and National-level rallying.

"Safety remains a key challenge, however the FIA is committed to doing everything possible to protect motor sport spectators, competitors, marshals and media. The best expertise, careful planning and correct implementation are crucial to the continued success of the sport we love," Todt was quoted in the 108-page manual.

Since spectators are within close proximity to the vehicles during racing, one of the main scope of the new guidelines is to increase spectator safety.

As stated in the website, the FIA encourages all of its National Sporting Authorities  to have their own safety delegates at each event they sanction.

The said move will be supported by a training program for safety delegates, with a pilot training seminar this year.

"From 2020 onwards, regional training seminars will be conducted for these Safety Delegates from each country around the world," the FIA stated.

The new manual also covers the role and responsibilities of officials; the use of safety cars and the safety plan; special Stage set-up; communication with marshals and fans; and incident handling.

Many of the said initiatives are designed to be implemented with little to no cost and the FIA will work with ASNs to ensure that is the case.

Yves Matton, FIA rally director, emphasize the importance of safety on rally.

"Safety is the key for the sustainability of rallying in the future and one of the keys in safety is education--we see this around the world. These guidelines will help educate all to have the best procedures and the best habits in rallying," Matton was quoted as saying.