Kenya is one step in hosting the World Rally Championships (WRC) next year after Safari Rally was provisionally listed pending final draft.
Kenya, once a ‘world’s toughest rally’ the Safari was stripped off its WRC status in October 2002 with this year’s edition set to be a Candidate Event where motor sport governing body the FIA will give or deny the green light for the country to return to the elite global circuit.
Sportpesanews.com reported on Saturday that Kenya Motor Sport Federation president, Phineas Kimathi, said the development was expected following the signing of an agreement between the WRC Promoter and the Ministry of Sports and Heritage in Paris last year with a view of the classic African fixture returning to the calendar in 2020.
“We signed a three year deal with the promoter running to 2022 and we were expected to fulfill conditions, the last which will be holding the Candidate Event this year. What is the most important thing for us is to ensure all those are met,” the retired local rally ace who starred in the Safari in the mid 90s stated.
“This is work in progress and there is no time we were not slotted for 2020. Being in the pre-calender for me is not new and what is critical is for us to get it right. The Candidate Event is the last one,” Kimathi clarified.
Managing Director, Oliver Ciesla and Principal Secretary for Sports, Ambassador Peter Kaberia and Kenya Motor Sport Federation and WRC Safari Rally Chairman, Kimathi put pen to paper in the deal in the presence of world body FIA President, Jean Todt last June.
“This agreement reflects our determination to restore the legendary rally to the championship and reinstate Africa to the top table of world rallying after an absence of more than a decade,” Ciesla remarked at the signing ceremony.
The Safari, which was last part of the WRC is due to take place as a candidate event in 2019, when the FIA and WRC Promoter will observe it.
Its return to the high table of rallying will be sealed if it meets ‘high level standards in key areas such as safety and organisation,’ the WRC press release stated.
“Our Government is very committed to the Safari Rally and we will do everything in our power to make sure this great event is brought back to the WRC. This signing is a major milestone and a day we have looked forward to for a very long time.
“There is still a lot of work to be done and we will collaborate closely with all parties ahead of next year’s candidate rally to show that Kenya is ready and capable to deliver what is expected,” Kaberia remarked at the time.
The WRC pulled the plug on the Safari in 2002 after failing to get Government guarantees of funding the event besides safety concerns for the works teams that make up the elite event.
Source: Sportpesanews.com