A Sociology of the World Rally Championship This Page Intentionally Left Blank a Sociology of the World Rally Championship History, Identity, Memories and Place

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

A Sociology of the World Rally Championship This Page Intentionally Left Blank a Sociology of the World Rally Championship History, Identity, Memories and Place A Sociology of the World Rally Championship This page intentionally left blank A Sociology of the World Rally Championship History, Identity, Memories and Place Hans Erik Naess University of Oslo, Norway © Hans Erik Naess 2014 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2014 978-1-137-40543-2 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2014 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of St Martin’s Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world. Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries. ISBN 978-1-349-48771-4 ISBN 978-1-137-40544-9 (eBook) DOI 10.1057/9781137405449 This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Naess, Hans Erik, 1978– A sociology of the World Rally Championship : history, identity, memories and place / Hans Erik Naess. pages cm Summary: “From its inauguration in 1973 until today, the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) has been transformed from a little-known series to a pop-cultural roadshow worth millions of euros. In a promotional context this has spurred a debate between those who want rallying to be what it was historically and those who desire a real shift into ‘the commercial age’. Drawing upon interviews with key people in the sport and trans-local ethnographic research from rallies, spectator cultures, the inner life of a WRC team, and the media production facilities, this book explores these questions of commerciality and sporting identity, arguing that the WRC’s sporting identity is in fact a promotional asset. Placed at the intersection of sociology and sports management, A Sociology of the World Rally Championship is essential reading on how to combine sporting heritage with commercial progress”—Provided by publisher. 1. Automobile racing—Sociological aspects. 2. Automobile racing—Economic aspects. 3. World Rally Championship—History. 4. Automobile rallies. 5. Identity (Psychology) I. Title. GV1029.N27 2014 796.72—dc23 2014021092 Typeset by MPS Limited, Chennai, India. Contents List of Figures and Tables vi Preface vii Acknowledgements viii List of Abbreviations ix 1 Introduction: The Paradox of Commercialism 1 2 The Promotional Context 24 3 Imagining the Story 55 4 The Sense of Place in Rallying 86 5 The Spectator Culture of Rallying 116 6 The Legacy of WRC Cars 150 7 Heroes behind the Wheel 178 8 The WRC’s Promotional Value 208 Notes 233 References 241 Index 258 v List of Figures and Tables Figures 1.1 A WRC car in 2012 9 2.1 The El Copina-Condor stage, Rally Argentina 2012 27 2.2 The defining factors of successfully communicating sport 39 2.3 The great outdoors 51 3.1 The media production hub at Wales Rally GB, 2010 59 4.1 On Sisteron-Thoard, 2013 92 4.2 Col de Turini, 2013 100 5.1 The San Augustin-Santa Rosa stage, Rally Argentina 2012 139 8.1 Rally culture 224 Tables 1.1 The FIA hierarchy of rallying, 2014 4 1.2 A timeline of WRC regulation eras 7 2.1 IMG’s overview of promotional methods 33 4.1 Costs and benefits from the 2009 NSW Rally Australia 112 5.1 A WRC event itinerary (Rally Monte Carlo 2014) 118 5.2 The demographic classification of WRC spectators 126 5.3 Dualistic fan typologies 143 5.4 Multidimensional approaches to sport consumption 144 6.1 The basic structure of a modern WRC team 157 vi Preface I have been a fan of rally since I was a kid in the 1980s. My father used to take me to a national winter event in Norway called Lygnasprinten. Memories of freezing temperatures and old Volvos going much too fast, combined with hot dogs grilled on provisional bonfires, accompanied by a never-ending stream of ‘war stories’, still bring a smile to my face. Later, as a teenager, I was glued to the TV screen on those rare occasions when World Rally Championship (WRC) events were aired on foreign channels. With the evolution of Internet in the late 1990s, my interest really skyrocketed. At times, I was a WRC junkie! And even though my interest was ignited by local heroes, it is the WRC names, cars, sounds and places that really have stuck with me – not least since my fellow countryman Petter Solberg became world champion when I was an undergraduate student in sociology in 2003. As a result, while this book in essence is an academic product, I have done my best never to lose the personal flavour in conveying what a fantastic roadshow the FIA WRC is. Above all, I have met people who have offered me more sup- port than I could ever ask for, both academically and sportingly, as well as introducing me to their lives as WRC aficionados. It is in their spirit this book is written. HEN, Oslo, June 2014 vii Acknowledgements I wish to thank those who have helped me complete this book without implicating them for the mistakes and errors that may remain. First, let me thank Professors Anne Krogstad and Helge Jordheim for leading me through the strenuous path of a PhD thesis and helping me converting it into a book, as well as my fellow PhD scholars Audun Solli and Herdis Hølleland for their valuable comments on various chapters. Special thanks to Centre Franco-Norvégien en Sciences Sociales et Humaines (CFN) for gener- ously awarding me a scholarship to do fieldwork in France and giving me an opportunity to finish the book. Special thanks also go to Professor Trond Petersen at the University of California, Berkeley, for accommodat- ing me and my family during a tense writing period in addition to provid- ing me with one of the most inspiring office views I could ask for. Then, for their accommodating responses, in no particular order, I would offer my deepest gratitude to FIA WRC General Manager, Michéle Mouton, the always insightful former world driver’s champion Ari Vatanen, David Richards at Prodrive; Malcolm Wilson, John Millington and Angela Torney at M-Sport; David Campion, Jonas Andersson, Mads Østberg, Morten Østberg, the rest of the Østberg family and all the others at M-Sport and the Adapta World Rally Team; Stephen Webb, Neal Duncanson, Simon Long, Nick Atkins and Catherine Ding at the former North One Sport; Morten Brusletto, Thomas Villette, Nicoletta Russo and especially Stefan Ph. Henrich at Hyundai; the representative from Fédération Française du Sport Automobile (FFSA) for elaborating on the move of the French WRC event from the island of Corsica to mainland France; Mario and Alejandro Fidelibus at Receptive Tours and Events Organization (RETO) for a fantas- tic experience at Rally Argentina; David Hutchinson and Neil Prunnell at Rally Travel for showing the best of Rally Monte Carlo and Ola Strömberg at Rallytravels for being a terrific storyteller at Rally Finland. For their various forms of support, I would also like to thank Andrew Milner, Valmar Viisel, Vigdis Dahlseide, Ilka Wendtland, Kristian Kjelman and Tiina Lehmonen; a big bow goes to all the rally fans around the globe who have contributed to this book, especially Bruno, Chris, Rickard, Mathias, Nicklas, Yukari, Linda, Sarah, Karina, Rosemary, Jennifer, Nathalie, Philip, Brian, Terry Jr and Terry Sr, Jo and Andrew. Finally, I would like to thank my wife and both our daughters – without your love and patience, this book would have never been. viii List of Abbreviations ACF Automobile Club de France ACM Automobile Club de Monaco AIACR Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus BPICA Bureau Permanent International des Constructeurs d’Automobiles CAMS Confederation of Australian Motor Sport CSI Commission Sportive Internationale CSI-1 Convers Sports Initiatives EBU European Broadcasting Union ERC European Rally Championship F1 Formula 1 FFSA Fédération Française du Sport Automobile FHI Fuji Heavy Industries FIA Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile FISA Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile FOA Formula One Administration FOCA Formula One Constructors Association IRC Intercontinental Rally Championship IRCM International Rally Championship for Makes ISC International Sportsworld Communicators NOS North One Sport NOT North One Television NSW New South Wales RBMH Red Bull Media House RETO Receptive Tours and Events Organization SAVM Sport Automobile Vélocipédique Monégasque STI Subaru Tecnica International TTE Toyota Team Europe ix x List of Abbreviations WEC World Endurance Championship WMSC World Motor Sport Council WRC World Rally Championship WTCC World Touring Car Championship.
Recommended publications
  • Success Factors for the I.D. R Pikes Peak: Pacemaker Dieter Depping, Test and Development Driver
    August 7, 2018 Success factors for the I.D. R Pikes Peak: Pacemaker Dieter Depping, test and development driver → Unsung hero behind the Pikes Peak record – Depping tested the I.D. R Pikes Peak → Depping is behind many successful Volkswagen race and rally cars → Romain Dumas: “Dieter was my second throttle foot” Wolfsburg (D) – He is the unsung hero and secret pacemaker behind the successful Pikes Peak project: Dieter Depping. The man from Hannover (Germany), who celebrates his 52nd birthday today on 7 August, has been a motorsport test and development driver for Volkswagen for 16 years. Without him, the twelve titles in the World Rally Championship (WRC), a further two titles in the FIA World Rallycross Championship (WRX), the three Dakar victories with the Race Touareg, and the many class wins at the Nürburgring 24 Hours would have been inconceivable. Or, as Romain Dumas puts it: “Dieter was my second throttle foot. Without him, the record on Pikes Peak would not have been possible”. The fact that this quote from Dumas came just moments after the ground-breaking Press contact 7:57.148 minutes, in which he had made motorsport and electromobility Volkswagen Motorsport GmbH history, speaks volumes of the key role that Dieter Depping has played in Andre Dietzel the Volkswagen Motorsport success story. Head of Communications & Marketing Tel: +49 175 723 4689 andre.dietzel@volkswagen- “The outstanding work that Dieter motorsport.com Depping does for Volkswagen Motorsport is of vital importance,” Volkswagen Product Communications Bernhard Kadow says Volkswagen Motorsport Projects & Motorsports Director Sven Smeets. “Every one Tel: +49 152 588 70782 of our successful motorsport [email protected] projects has received a lot of valuable input from Dieter.
    [Show full text]
  • Motorsport Information 04
    Motorsport Information 04 2014 FIA World Rally Championship calendar Date Country Event Surface 14/01–19/01/2014 Rally Monte Carlo Asphalt/snow 05/02–08/02/2014 Rally Sweden Ice & snow 06/03–09/03/2014 Rally Mexico Gravel 03/04–06/04/2014 Rally Portugal Gravel 08/05–11/05/2014 Rally Argentina Gravel 05/06–08/06/2014 Rally Italy Gravel 26/06–29/06/2014 Rally Poland Gravel 31/07–03/08/2014 Rally Finland Gravel 22/08–24/08/2014 Rally Germany Asphalt 12/09–14/09/2014 Rally Australia Gravel 03/10–05/10/2014 Rally France Asphalt 24/10–26/10/2014 Rally Spain Gravel/asphalt 14/11–16/11/2014 Rally Great Britain Gravel Content 03 Pocket Facts 09/2014 Content FIA World Rally Championship Rally Germany – Preview 04 Volkswagen Polo R WRC – Technology 06 Volkswagen Polo R WRC – Technical specifications 08 Volkswagen Team – #1 Sébastien Ogier 10 Julien Ingrassia 11 Volkswagen Team – #2 Jari-Matti Latvala 12 Miikka Anttila 13 Volkswagen Team – #9 Andreas Mikkelsen 14 Ola Fløene 15 Volkswagen Team – Who’s who 16 Statistics 18 Rally Germany Rally information 20 Rally history 22 Rally map 24 Rally schedule 26 Rally entrants 28 Volkswagen Motorsport and Volkswagen brand Engagements 30 RALLY THE WORLD campaign 32 Useful links 33 Volkswagen Polo R WRC production car 34 Partners 36 Notes 37 Useful addresses 46 As per 11/08/2014 04 Preview Back home with a score to settle Volkswagen has set itself a clear goal when it lines up at round nine of the season in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), the Rally Germany: victory.
    [Show full text]
  • Press Release Nr. 2 28Th April 2017
    Press Release nr. 2 28th April 2017 AT RALLYLEGEND 2017 AN EPOCHAL EVENT: FIFTEEN RALLY WORLD CHAMPIONS, FROM 1977 TO TODAY, PRESENT IN SAN MARINO FOR THE "COLIN MC RAE TRIBUTE". Almost the entire World Rally Hall of Fame, from birth to today, gathers for the tribute to the great Scottish driver, ten years after his death Republic of San Marino. All together, at Rallylegend next October 21st and 22nd: Walter Rohrl, Ari Vatanen, Hannu Mikkola, Stig Blomqvist, Timo Salonen, Juha Kankkunen, Miki Biasion, Didier Auriol, Tommi Makinen, Marcus Gronholm, Petter Solberg, Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier, with Sandro Munari and Markku Alen, winners of the FIA Driver Cups 1977 and 1978, that later became the World Rally Drivers since 1979. Fifteen World Rally Champions, for a total of thirty-four world drivers titles - almost all the history of the World Championship series - will gather in the Republic of San Marino - for two days World Rally Capital - for the "Colin Mc Rae Tribute", Rallylegend's tribute to the memory of the great Scottish champion, ten years after his premature and tragic disappearance. For Colin Mc Rae, at Rallylegend there will also be Derek Ringer, the co-driver with whom the late Scottish driver won the World Championship title in 1995, and Nicky Grist, another important co-driver for him; while two other World Champion co-drivers, Hans Thorszelius and Robert Reid, will be present at San Marino to bring their memory of two champions who are no longer among us, such as Bjorn Waldegaard and Richard Burns. An epochal event, a "reunion" so far never seen, the dream of all fans: having so many legendary champions, all together, for two days.
    [Show full text]
  • OCTOBER 2014 Contents Stress? What Stress?
    NO. 391 OCTOBER 2014 Contents Stress? What Stress? Events...................................2 ike some people my current job allows me to work from home Diary Dates..........................5 Lmost of the time apart from the required site visits and meetings Messages From Margate......8 which I have to attend, I am fortunate enough to have a great Carrera Corner..................16 employer and to some of my friends my current position appears to Forza Slot.it........................18 be easy, with them often ringing me up and asking if I am watching Ninco News........................24 Jeremy Kyle this morning! Bits & Pieces.......................28 To be fair it is 70% of the time reasonably relaxed, but of course Heart of England Report..38 like many other jobs it has it’s fair share of stress, trouble and general Ebay Watch........................41 grief for the remaining 30% of the time, usually it appears, when I am trying to find time to do the Journal at the end of the month. So linking in again to my opening paragraphs in a round about way is the recent Havant swapmeet, which having attended and spoken to a few who were there, dealers, traders and buyers alike appears to have been a very successful event, and worthy of opening the swapmeet season both this year and hopefully beyond? Thanks and indeed congratulations I would say, to the organisers both Robert Learmouth and Steve Cannon for organising the event and I am sure who both put in considerable time and effort in doing so, particularly as it wasn’t just a swapmeet but also a informal gathering and meeting of a number of people who worked for Minimodels/ Scalex when they were based out of the Havant Factory, started by ‘Fred’ Francis all those years ago.
    [Show full text]
  • ŠKODA Motorsport, Page 1 of 4
    ŠKODA Motorsport, Page 1 of 4 ŠKODA duos on track to finish on the podium in the Fabia R5 at the Rally de Portugal › "Flying Finn" Lappi gets first three stage best times in the new high-tech rocket › Lappi second, Tidemand third in the WRC 2 standings ahead of the final day › Big final on Sunday with legendary Fafe stage in front of 100,000 fans Porto, 23 May 2015 – After a strong performance, two ŠKODA duos in the new Fabia R5 are heading for the podium in the WRC 2 standings of the Rally de Portugal. European champions Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm (FIN/FIN) got the first three stage best times on Saturday on the new rally car's first start in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). Going into the final day, this sees "Flying Finn" Lappi in second place in the overall standings, directly ahead of the second ŠKODA team Pontus Tidemand/Emil Axelsson (S/S). "We are delighted with how the WRC debut in the new Fabia R5 is developing for us so far. But our main aim is to finish the rally," said ŠKODA Motorsport Director Michal Hrabánek. On the hardest day of the Rally de Portugal with 165.40 kilometres scheduled, on the winding gravel tracks around Porto, the high-tech four-wheel drive showed how much potential it has. Right on the first stage, Baião 1, Lappi got the historic first WRC best time in the new ŠKODA Fabia R5, 4.2 seconds faster than his team-mate Tidemand. "Yesterday we had stones, today sand; the conditions were totally different to Friday.
    [Show full text]
  • 50 Ans De Volkswagen Motorsport 13 Septembre 2016 V16/29F
    • presse • news • prensa • tisk • imprensa • prasa • stampa • pers • 50 ans de Volkswagen Motorsport 13 septembre 2016 V16/29F Une exposition spéciale interactive célébrant les 50 ans de Volkswagen Motorsport a officiellement ouvert ses portes à Berlin au DRIVE. Volkswagen Group Forum, au croisement des rues Friedrichstrasse 84 / Unter den Linden. L’accent est mis sur la présentation de véhicules uniques dont la Golf à double moteur conçue pour l’iconique course de côte du Pikes Peak, le Race Touareg 3 que Gottschalk et Nasser Al-Attiyah (Q) ont mené à la victoire au Dakar 2011 et l’actuelle Polo R WRC victorieuse en Championnat du Monde des Rallyes. Cette exposition interactive se déroulera jusqu’au 30 octobre. Pour plus d’informations, visitez le site: http://www.drive-volkswagen-group.com/en/. Ci-après, vous trouverez le dossier complet sur les 50 ans de Volkswagen Motorsport en anglais. s.a. D’Ieteren n.v. Press relations Contact Maliestraat 50, Rue du Mail T. : 02/536.50.72 1050 Brussel/Bruxelles [email protected] BTW/TVA BE0403.448.140 www.volkswagen-press.be RPR Brussel / RPM Bruxelles Motorsport Information Information Package 50 Years of Volkswagen Motorsport Contents 02 Contents Gallery 03 Introduction 08 Time Bar Interview Jost Capito 13 Background Formula Vee and 21 Formula 3 Background One-Make Cup 28 Background 33 Endurance Races Background Dakar Rally 39 Background 45 WRC Background Rallycross 51 History 57 Facts and Figures Volkswagen Motorsport For Media 60 Gallery 03 Formula Vee “Born in the USA” – and
    [Show full text]
  • Motorsport Information
    Motorsport Information FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), Rally Spain Champions, champions, champions, champions*! Ogier/Ingrassia claim fourth WRC title in a row with Volkswagen § Crowned with a win: Ogier/Ingrassia wrap up world title after eleven rallies § Title defence sees champions join Kankkunen and Mäkinen in exclusive club § Match point number two for Volkswagen in the Manufacturers’ Championship Wolfsburg (16 October 2016). Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (F/F) were crowned World Rally Champions for the fourth time in a row after taking victory at the Rally Spain. They guided their Volkswagen Polo R WRC to a fifth win of the season in Catalonia, finishing ahead of Dani Sordo/Marc Martí (E/E, Hyundai) und Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (B/B, Hyundai). Their ninth podium in eleven races triggered wild celebrations. The Frenchmen can no longer be caught at the top of the overall standings in the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). Team-mates Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger (N/N) went into the Rally Spain as their closest rivals in the title race, but the Norwegians’ hopes of winning the championship were dashed when they were forced to retire from the rally. Eighth place in the Manufacturers’ classifications for Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila (FIN/FIN) means Volkswagen is well- placed to claim its fourth Manufacturers’ title in a row next time out at the Rally Great Britain. Kankkunen, Mäkinen and Ogier – up there with the biggest names in rallying 952 days in a row at the top of the table: Sébastien Ogier is only the third World Rally Champion to be crowned champion four years in a row in the pinnacle of rallying, and the fourth four-time world champion in the history of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC).
    [Show full text]
  • Chairmans Chat Front Cover - Member Clubs Since the Last Issue of „Spotlight‟ – the SD34 MSG Monthly Mo- Pg
    Contents Chairmans Chat Front Cover - Member Clubs Since the last issue of „spotlight‟ – The SD34 MSG Monthly Mo- Pg. 2 Chairmans Chat torsport Magazine – I spent two days helping on the Wales Rally Pg. 3 Member Club Contacts GB in North and Mid Wales and thankfully the weather on Days 1 Pg. 4 More SD34MSG Contacts and 3 was lovely although I believe Day 2 was very wet. What I Pg. 5 Around the Clubs (1) want to know is “Why does it take so many more people, in their Pg. 6 Around the Clubs (2) numerous vehicles, to run this event than it does to run all the Pg. 7 Rally of the Incas other events we all help on during the year ???” Pg. 8 SD34 MSG League Positions I am pleased to welcome Fylde Motor Sport Club who will be Pg. 9 SD34 MSG Championship Tables joining the Group from 1st January 2012. This is a local club newly Pg. 10 Wales Rally GB - WRC recognised by the MSA but some of the members have been in- Pg. 11 More Wales Rally GB volved in motorsport for many years but more importantly the club Pg. 12 WRC Academy Champion has got several keen young members which are vital to the future Pg. 13 Roger Albert Clark Rally of our beloved sport. There is a healthy enthusiasm to get involved Pg. 14 Tempest Rally in events so I‟m sure our existing member clubs will welcome any Pg. 15 Odds Sods & Bodkins extra hands offered in running events and in that way FMSC can Pg.
    [Show full text]
  • Yearbook Four 2017 Our Fourth Hyundai Motorsport Yearbook Explores the Growth and Milestones of Our Company During Another Exciting Year
    Yearbook Four 2017 Our fourth Hyundai Motorsport Yearbook explores the growth and milestones of our company during another exciting year. With new World Rally Championship (WRC) regulations, it was a challenging 12 months that provided some of the most thrilling competition of the modern era. Our new car, the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, was a winning package on every surface and kept audiences transfixed on a championship battle that went all the way to the penultimate round… In 2017, we also branched out with our Customer Racing initiatives and welcomed a new circuit racer to our car line- up. The i30 N TCR joined the New Generation i20 R5 rally offering as part of our expanding customer activities. All this, and much more, is explored within these covers. Turn the pages for a candid look through each month from Monte-Carlo to Australia and join us in reflecting on Hyundai Motorsport’s fourth year in the world’s toughest motorsport championship. Hyundai Motorsport Yearbook Edition Four 2017 1 2 3 4 Contents WRC’s new era 06 July Launch of the i20 Coupe WRC 10 WRC Rally Finland 66 January i30 N performance 70 WRC Rally Monte-Carlo 16 Eifel Rallye Festival 74 February August WRC Rally Sweden 20 WRC Rally Germany 76 March September WRC Rally Mexico 24 Andreas Mikkelsen 80 Rallye Sanremo 28 R5 title successes 82 Marketing & PR Conference 32 HMDP 84 April October WRC Rally France 36 WRC Rally Spain 86 A car for all seasons 40 WRC Rally GB 90 WRC Rally Argentina 46 November May WRC Rally Australia 94 WRC Rally Portugal 50 i30 N TCR 98 June December WRC Rally Italy 54 Season review 104 WRC Rally Poland 58 Timeline 106 Ypres Rally 62 Partners 110 Thank you 116 Copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH Publication: December 2017, All Rights Reserved.
    [Show full text]
  • Wales Rally GB 08 Preview
    76 th Wales Rally GB (December 4-7, 2008) Citroën targeting the championship double in Wales True to tradition, the grand finale of this year's World Rally Championship will take crews to Great Britain for the Wales Rally GB, the 15 th and ultimate encounter of the season which will settle the outcome of the 2008 Manufacturers' title chase. Having made sure of the Drivers' crown with Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena* in Japan, the Citroën Total squad is particularly fired up as it bids to seal the championship double. C4 WRCs have been entered for the five-time World Champions* and their Spanish team-mates Dani Sordo/Marc Martí. Two other C4 WRCs have been entered to contest the British round. They will be in the hands of Conrad Rautenbach/David Senior and of the recently-crowned Junior World Champions* Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia, and both will be prepared and run by PH Sport with the support of technical staff from Citroën Sport The majority of the route of this year's Wales Rally GB, which provides a little more than 348km of competitive action divided into 19 stages, will take competitors north of the Swansea-based service park, and features several notable changes compared with recent years. These range from a re-mix of familiar forest territory in Resolfen and classics such as Crychan run in the opposite direction, as well as a return to Builth Wells for the first time in eight years. Indeed, the format of this season's edition and its early-December slot inevitably conjure up images of RAC Rallies of the past and the lingering use of the event's former name will rarely have been more justified.
    [Show full text]
  • Mayor Markku Andersson Gdansk, 20Th Sept
    Mayor Markku Andersson Gdansk, 20th Sept. 2013 •Jyväskylä 133,000 inhabitants. •45 000 students and school children •University of Jyväskylä •University of Applied Sciences •Jyväskylä Educational Consortium •Air Force Academy JYVÄSKYLÄ * Almost 40% of citizens are students. * 70 % of citizens over 15 years have graduated from educational institutions. * 1/3 of our citizens have a university level education. Jyväskylä the City ofMarkku Light Andersson Markku Andersson 1951 The Finnish round of the WRC Neste Oil Rally Finland Neste Oil Rally Finland is one of the best organized WRC events in the world and is held in Jyväskylä every July-August A top event for the region • 250 000 visitors and • Media value of 20 spectators million euros • 500 national and • Economic impact of 15- international media 20 million euros in the representatives Jyväskylä region • TV programmes to • Over 10 million web hits almost 200 countries • 5000 volunteers • 900 TV broadcasts to • Involving 200 all over the world companies WRC Calendar 2013 • Rallye Monte-Carlo 15 - 20 Jan 13 • Rally Sweden 07 - 10 Feb 13 • Rally Guanajuato Mexico 07 - 10 Mar 13 • Vodafone Rally de Portugal 11 - 14 Apr 13 • Philips LED Rally Argentina 01 - 04 May 13 • Acropolis Rally 31 May - 02 Jun 13 • Rally d'Italia Sardegna 20 - 22 Jun 13 • Neste Oil Rally Finland 01 - 03 Aug 13 • ADAC Rallye Deutschland 22 - 25 Aug 13 • Coates hire Rally Australia 12 - 15 Sep 13 • Rallye de France-Alsace 03 - 06 Oct 13 • RallyRACC-Rally de Espana 24 - 27 Oct 13 • Wales Rally GB 14 - 17 Nov 13 World Rally Championship Image 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Tamara Takes the Euro Test
    FIA WOMEN IN MOTOR SPORT MARCH 2017 – ISSUE 12 TAYLOR’S TITLE DEFENCE AUTO ARC champion Molly Taylor on a new season, a new car and her status as title favourite PG 6 BOLDLY CELEBRATING CHANGE Motor sport gathers in global celebration of International Women’s Day WOMEN IN PG15 TAKING CENTRE STAGE Record number of women take part in this year’s Monte Carlo Historique PG16 MOTORSPORT TAMARA TAKES THE EURO TEST Rallying’s rising star joins forces with Opel to take on her biggest challenge yet – a bid for U-27 glory in the ERC AUTO+WOMEN IN MOTOR SPORT AUTO+WOMEN IN MOTOR SPORT Welcome to this latest edition of the FIA’s AUTO+ Women in Motorsport newsletter. As we begin new seasons of motor sport action, this edition looks at the sporting moves made by a number of women across a range of categories, from rallying to circuit racing, from Europe to South America to Australia. Our cover story features rising rally star Tamara Molinaro, who thanks to help from the FIA Women in Motorsport Commission, is taking her first steps onto the international stages in the FIA European Rally Championship Junior series. Meanwhile, Down Under, established rally queen Molly Taylor is beginning her defence of the Australian Rally Championship title. Another racer making a mark Down Under is single-seater driver Simone De Silvestro, who has swapped Formula E for a new challenge – an assault on the intensely competitive V8 Supercars Championship. We also focus on Colombian Tatiana Calderon’s progress as an F1 development driver with Sauber and on a young driver making waves in the South American racing scene, Grace Hemmerde.
    [Show full text]