THE CYPRUS Rally, third round of the 2009 World Rally Championship, which will be run from Limassol on March 13 – 15, was officially launched in Nicosia yesterday.
After two years when the rally was not included in the WRC, fans can again look forward to top level racing on the island, with world champion Sebastien Loeb heading the field and looking for his 50th WRC win. 2003 winner Petter Solberg will also enter as a privateer in a Citroen Xsara.
The organisers announced that, for the first time in 15 years, a company had lent its name to the rally, which will be known as the FxPro Cyprus Rally.
Finding the funding to run such a prestigious sporting event is always problematic, and while the Cyprus Tourism Organisation and the Cyprus Sports Organisation can lend limited support, finding a major corporate sponsor – especially in these troubled financial times – is quite a coup.
FxPro representative Louiza Protopapa explained why the company chose to become the title sponsor of the event: “The World Rally Championship has a mass audience and particularly this year, it seems there will be over 50 million viewers worldwide, in more than 150 countries, with their eyes focused on our island.
“Our company is Cypriot, an online trading and investment specialist, offering an array of sophisticated trading tools and services, including the industry’s most advanced trading conditions for CFDs on spot FX, futures, stocks and precious metals.”
FxPro has taken advertising spots which focus on the Cyprus Rally on worldwide networks such as Bloomberg, Euronews and Fashion TV, and it’s hoped these will promote Cyprus as an attractive tourism destination.
As well as promising “a big surprise”, the organisers announced that the ceremonial start on March 12th will move from the seafront promenade to the Spyros Kyprianou Palais Des Sports, where Greek singing sensation and Eurovision hopeful Sakis Rouvas will give a concert immediately afterwards.
Clerk of the Course Takis Kyriakides said 35 entrants were expected, and that the event would be the only one on this year’s calendar to feature both asphalt and gravel special stages. The first Leg will be all asphalt, with Legs 2 and 3 will feature the gravel stages for which Cyprus is better known. Some WRC drivers have commented negatively on having to use gravel tyres and suspension set-ups on tarmac stages, but Kyriakides said it was the teams themselves that had requested this setup, and that permission had been granted by the FIA for teams to be allowed four extra tyres on the first Leg.
As well as being round 3 of the World Rally Championship, the rally will count towards both the J-WRC and the P-WRC (Junior and Production WRC).
Cypriot drivers will also be competing, including two past winners of the Cyprus Rally, Nicos Thomas and Charalambous Timotheou. Other local drivers who have confirmed their participation are Pantelis Pambouka, Yiotis Chartoupalos, Eraklis Velissariou and Aristofanis Avraam.
* For regularly updated information about the FxPro Cyprus Rally 2009, visit the official website at www.cyprusrally.com.cy
