Mohammed Bin Sulayem said Thursday that the UAE has made a great start in its efforts to create a new generation of volunteer marshals who can play a key role in the development of motor sport in the Emirates. Just three months after launching an appeal for volunteers ahead of the new racing season and November's Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Sulayem, President of the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE, said he is delighted with the response. Of the 600 marshals he was to address prior to a special F1 Grand Prix training session at Yas Marina Circuit Friday, 400 have come forward in direct response to the new recruitment drive. This has been co-ordinated for Sulayem by the UAE Motor Sport Marshals Club, set up earlier this year and run under the jurisdiction of the ATCUAE. “The response has been better than we could have hoped for, and we are now ahead of schedule, although there is still a lot of work to do to train the new marshals and integrate them with the experienced volunteers, and we still need more volunteers,” he said. “Our overall goal is to create a team of UAE-based and especially native Emirati officials and marshals to ensure sustainable, more self-sufficient motor sport events in the future, without the need to bring in volunteers from elsewhere.” Of the 700 marshals needed for last year's inaugural F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, 350 marshals were recruited from the UK and the rest were made up of expatriates and Emiratis. The UAE Motor Sport Marshals Club was set up to boost local interest, and those keen to join can find details on the official ATCUAE website www.atcuae.ae. Often the unsung heroes of motor racing, marshals are normally first on the scene of an incident, ensuring safety and assisting drivers so that the race can continue with as little interruption as possible. They act as the eyes and ears of race officials on the track, reporting to Race Control and, in the case of flag marshals, communicate with drivers. __
