WRC Safari Rally Kenya officially cancelled
The 2020 WRC Safari Rally Kenya has been officially called off due to the ongoing novel COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions, the Kenyan government has confirmed.
The FIA, the WRC Promoter and the Kenyan government have been in close contact in recent weeks, arranging several discussions to make a decision over the fate of the Safari Rally. The event in Kenya was set to make a suprise return after a 18-year hiatus. The last round in Kenya, held in 2020, was won by Colin McRae and his co-driver Nicky Grist.
Due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis and the travel restrictions, the FIA, the WRC Promoter and the Kenyan government have decided to call off the event for 2020.
“We are grateful to the [Safari Rally] Patron, His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta, for his unwavering support and counsel as we deliberated on the next best steps,” said Amina Mohamed, Kenya’s cabinet secretary for sport, culture and heritage.
“We also owe exceptional gratitude to the President of the FIA, Mr. Jean Todt and the WRC Promoter led by Oliver Ciesla for their unyielding support since we commenced engagements to return the Safari Rally to the WRC circuit.”
The Kenya Rally organisation has signed a three-year contract with the WRC Promoter that would have seen the premier class of rally competition visit the country through at least 2022. Mohamed has confirmed that the cancellation of the event will not have any impact on next year’s round and the return of the event will be completed in 2021.
“We will continue to prepare for the event as groundworks are already in top gear and look forward to welcoming rally professionals, teams and enthusiasts to Kenya when the event is re-convened next year.”
“Postponing the event to 2021 was not a simple decision to make, however, we are cognisant of the present global challenges and assure that the Safari Rally will mark a significant part of our country’s history as was intended for the next three years,” she concluded.
