JUNE 22, 1998

...Piccinini moves up

THE Extraordinary General Assembly of the FIA in Stockholm has elected Marco Piccinini its Deputy President.

THE Extraordinary General Assembly of the FIA in Stockholm has elected Marco Piccinini its Deputy President. Piccinini replaces the late Cesar Torres, who died of cancer last autumn at the age of 54. The 46-year-old Italian is closely associated with Ferrari, having served as the company's sporting director between 1977 and 1988. He proved himself to be an adept political player during the FISA-FOCA war of 1980 and formed a bond with Max Mosley and Bernie Ecclestone. The three were the prime architects of the original Concorde Agreement in 1981.

Since leaving Ferrari Piccinini has run his family's business, a private Monaco-based bank called the Principe Societe de Banque de Monaco. In 1993 he was appointed head of the CSAI, the Italian national sporting authority, and as a result he took a seat on the World Motor Sport Council. He resigned from the CSAI post in 1994 but cleverly contrived to keep his FIA position.

When Bernie Ecclestone issued details of the planned structure of Formula 1 Holdings Ltd. after its flotation, Piccinini was named as deputy chief executive. Piccinini's place on the World Motor Sport Council has been taken by Sweden's LarsÊOsterlind, a longtime Mosley supporter.