Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone has said he regrets praising Adolf Hitler's ability to "get things done" in a newspaper interview. His comments which were denounced by World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder and the Central Council of Jews in Germany, among others. In reaction, Ecclestone wrote in the ‘The Times’ newspaper on Tuesday: "I unreservedly apologize for the remarks I made regarding Hitler in a recent interview. I am extremely distressed and embarrassed that these remarks have been used as suggesting that I support Hitler or Saddam Hussein. I would never support such people. I should never have been so foolish as to have been drawn into discussing these people but the fault was entirely mine, which I deeply regret."
Ecclestone revisited his remarks about Hitler in an attempt to clarify what he was trying to say. "During the 1930s Germany was facing an economic crisis but Hitler was able to rebuild the economy, building the autobahns and German industry," he said.
CVC, the private equity firm that controls Formula 1, said it was shocked by comments made by Ecclestone that apparently supported Adolf Hitler. "CVC was shocked at the comments made by Bernie Ecclestone on Saturday," the private equity firm said in a statement. "And we fully concur with the unreserved apology that was made by Mr. Ecclestone yesterday."
Meanwhile, Günther Oettinger, govenor of the southern German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, canceled a meeting with Ecclestone on the sidelines of the Nürburgring Grand Prix next weekend because of Ecclestone’s comments about Hitler.
