Serb mayor treasures Schumacher tyre

A tyre from seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher's Ferrari has ended up in the hands of a Serbian town mayor.

The tyre, used on Schumacher's car when he won the 2006 Chinese Grand Prix, was offered to Dragan Markovic, the major of the southern town of Jagodina, by an Italian company after they concluded a business deal, he told AFP.

"It is the most precious gift that I've ever received, notably as it comes for a company that invested" in Jagodina, Markovic said.

"It is a tyre that was actually used during the Grand Prix race in China. I will keep it in my office where it will be a source of inspiration for my future work," he added.

The 42-year-old German retired from Formula One at the end of the 2006 season in which he came in second to Spaniard Fernando Alonso, returning to the track in 2010.