The global government body for motorsports, the FIA, has appointed an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Advisor after comments of its president Bin Sulayem on the activism of former Formula One world champions Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel drew criticism.
The FIA has appointed Tanya Kutsenko, the first ever EDI Advisor dedicated to motorsport. The press release describes Kutsenko as an "Ukrainian-born accomplished international motorsport development expert with profound knowledge of regional motorsport needs".
The controversy began when in an interview with GrandPrix247 the FIA president called the activism of Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and Lando Norris on issues of human rights issues, promotion of LGBTQ+ rights and mental health respectively "too political".
The FIA announces the appointment of an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Advisorhttps://t.co/boNXWL1Rlh
— FIA (@fia) June 10, 2022
The FIA president then tried clarifying his remarks posting, "As a driver, I have always believed in sport as a catalyst of progress in society," on Twitter.
The FIA president was criticised on social media, and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton retorted saying all Formula One drivers needed to be more outspoken.
In today's appointment statement, FIA President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem's statement reads, "Equality, diversity and inclusion are a key priority of my mandate as FIA President. In line with our strategy to promote greater diversity, the appointment of a dedicated and experienced Advisor in charge of these issues will allow us to accelerate inclusion and double participation in motorsport."
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