Kenya moves closer to hosting Safari Rally

PARIS: Kenya will host the Safari Rally in 2019 and that could lead to a return to the World Rally Championship the next year, the WRC announced on Friday.

The organisation said it had the signed agreement with Kenyan sports secretary Peter Kaberia in Paris on Thursday and will run next year’s race as a “candidate event” in either March or April. The WRC and the FIA, the governing body of world motor sports, will then determine if conditions for a return to the circuit as a fully-fledged race have been met.

The iconic African event, famed for its tough driving conditions, featured on the World Championship circuit between 1973 and 2002, save for 1995. The first ever edition in 1953, marking the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, crossed into Tanzania and Uganda. Next year’s race is due to offer stages around Lakes Naivasha and Nakuru northwest of the capital Nairobi in the Great Rift Valley. Kaberia told reporters that Nairobi was “very committed to the Safari Rally” and its return to the circuit. WRC director of marketing Olivier Ciesla said the accord “reflects our determination to restore a legendary rally to the championship and reintegrate Africa to the top table of world rallying after an absence of more than a decade.”