FIA's Ethics Committee rejects David Ward's complaint
The FIA's Ethics Committee has rejected a complaint from presidential candidate David Ward that rival Jean Todt's use of support letters was a breach of regulations
Ward complained that Todt has acted incorrectly in seeking support letters from FIA clubs prior to the official election campaign kicking off.
Following a hearing in Paris last week, however, the Ethics Committee did not agree with Ward's views and insisted that Todt had done nothing wrong.
In its verdict, the Ethics Committee said: "Based on the foregoing, the Committee finds that nothing in what the Committee saw or heard gives any hint that any ethical regulation of the FIA has been breached by Mr Todt or any of the parties implicated.
"The Committee also did not see any evidence of any kind supporting the allegation that people were coerced into signing the Letters of support for Mr Todt.
"On the contrary, the Committee has received numerous letters from individual who attended the relevant meetings, albeit unsolicited, clearly showing that the letters of support were voluntary."
Ward himself expressed disappointment at the findings of the committee in a lengthy response - and reiterated that his standing for the presidential role has been about highlighting deficiencies in the FIA's organisation.
"My purpose in standing has been to highlight the current flaws in the governance of the FIA," he said.
"I think the current confusion over the election rules which require a change even after the contest has started proves my point.
"It is also regrettable that the Ethics Committee has, in my opinion, failed to address important issues about the fairness and transparency of the election process."
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