FFSA campaign for the ICM

Bernie Ecclestone, President FOM, Jacques Regis, Président Fédération Francaise du Sport Automobile (FFSA), Jean Todt, General Manager, Ferrari: Fund raising campaign for the Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epinière (ICM -- Brain and Spinal Cord Institute)on the occasion of the Mobil 1 French Grand Prix - 2, 3 and 4 July 2004.

On Saturday May 29th, at the Allianz European Grand Prix, Nuerburgring (Germany), Bernie Ecclestone, President FOM, Jacques Regis, Président Fédération Francaise du Sport Automobile (FFSA), Jean Todt, General Manager, Ferrari Spa, Prf. Olivier Lyon-Caen (Neurologist), hosted a press conference to announce that the FFSA will be particularly responsive to the initiative supported by Jean Todt and Michael Schumacher through their commitment to the ICM project.

On the occasion of the Mobil 1 French Grand Prix, which is to take place on 2, 3 and 4 July 2004, the Fédération Française du Sport Automobile will contribute directly to research into diseases of the brain and spinal cord in partnership with the ICM.

When it took over the organisation of the French Grand Prix in January, the FFSA wanted to give a new dimension, more open and more human, to this major event in France's sporting heritage. The FFSA hopes to awaken public interest in this project of international dimensions.

During the three days of the Mobil 1 French Grand Prix, the FFSA as partner of the ICM, will be closely involved in this public awareness campaign by conducting several communication operations:

- Two stands in the ICM colours will present the characteristics of this project to the general public. Doctors and founding members will explain their motivation for creating this institute.

- At each of the stands there will be a collection box into which members of the public can place direct donations. A raffle will be held, with various prizes including two of a trip round the track with Ferrari drivers, Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello on Saturday and Sunday at the Mobil 1 French Grand Prix in either a Ferrari or Maserati.

- Radio messages and promotional announcements broadcast on the circuit will also support the appeal for donations.

Lastly, the FFSA will make a direct contribution to the fund-raising by donating a share of the profits from the tickets sold.

The Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epinière (ICM), the project for which was presented on 21 January this year, will be inaugurated in 2008, although it will begin to be operational from 2005 with the opening of an MRI dedicated to research.

The Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epinière (ICM) sprang from the association of three world-famous professors: Professors Gérard Saillant, orthopaedist and trauma specialist, and Professors Yves Agid and Olivier Lyon-Caen, neurologists.

This international project has the backing of eight international celebrities: Luc Besson, Louis Camilleri, Jean Glavany, Maurice Lévy, Jean-Pierre Martel, Michael Schumacher, Jean Todt and Serge Weinberg.

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