“I do not agree that I failed to produce any evidence in support of my
complaint,” he said. “I submitted witness statements which showed clearly
that there was concern about the support agreements. The committee has
powers to investigate but in my case it chose not to use them.”
Ward had hoped that his decision to run for president might encourage others
to do so, with speculation that he was a stalking horse for the United Arab
Emirates’ Mohammed Bin Sulayem.
Bin Sulayem’s decision last weekend not to run for election, combined with the
Ethics Committee’s reports, have effectively killed off any chance of Todt
being deposed.
Ward himself may not be able to stand as he is struggling to provide his list
of 11 candidates, including seven vice-presidents for sport, by the Nov 15
deadline.
With Ward complaining about the election system, insisting it is all but
impossible to challenge the incumbent, it is understood that at least three
FIA member clubs have tabled a motion for the Dec 6 meeting to discuss
removing the need for vice-presidents for sport being included on the
presidential list.