Young drivers Christopher Njeim and Rashed Ghanem spent a full week in Britain on an intensive development programme after scoring the most points in the second part of the FIA grant programme in Lebanon.
The second edition of Lebanon’s young driver development programme was held in July, initiated by FIA MENA coordinator and ATCL motorsport committee coordinator Imad Lahoud. It was supervised by Khalil Bechir in coordination with the FIA, with top coaches including British Formula 1 driver coach Simon Fitchett, and attended by the FIA’s head of education and grants management, Catherine Robson.
The drivers did fitness training with Fitchett and simulator sessions, and spent a full day testing a Formula 4 car at Pembrey with Double R Racing, each covering more than 250km.
In his first time in a racing car other than a kart, Ghanem impressed the team with his braking technique and by doing everything the engineers asked, improving his pace quickly. Njeim, driving a Formula 4 car for the second time after just 30 laps last year, was quickly on the pace and impressed with his speed and maturity, and Fitchett was pleased with how far his fitness had come since the first edition of the programme last November.
The boys did a great job. Rashed drove the car as if he were not a beginner. He has work to do on fitness in the coming months. Christopher proved once again that he is a talented, professional driver who works very hard to seize this opportunity because he wants it. We are now working to secure a racing programme for Christopher next year and a development programme for Rashed so he can enter racing soon.
Khalil Bechir
First, I would like to thank FIA President Jean Todt, his deputy Graham Stoker and Catherine Robson for believing in us. Since joining the FIA my mission has been to focus on the rising generation to help grow this sport in the region.
Imad Lahoud
Lahoud said the results of Ghanem’s Formula 4 and simulator runs proved the drivers had been well chosen, and called Njeim “a rare case in motorsport” with the ability to compete strongly in Formula 4. “We have very high potential for single-seater racing in Lebanon,” he said, urging ambitious young Lebanese to follow the pair’s example. The next steps of their programme are due to be announced soon.