The ATCL has announced the 36th Rally of Lebanon which is set to take place between the 5th and 8th of September, sponsored by president Michel Sleiman. It is the fourth round of the 2013 Middle East Rally Championship and will be held on tarmac stages. Registration started on July 8 and will be closed on August 23.
Let’s take a look back at the important steps that the ATCL has gone through to ensure the highest ranks and levels for the Rally of Lebanon.
The ATCL has always been associated with Motorsport and is the only official FIA representative in Lebanon. In 1952, the first Rally of Lebanon was organized under the “Rally of Lebanon and Syria” name; 3 years later, the ATCL arranged the 647-km Rally Lebanon, which was then followed by a similar event 4 years later.
In 1968, the club organized what was known as the Mountain Rally; it stretched across 1100 kilometers and became a famous annual event, attracting drivers from around the globe such as Italian driver Sandro Munari who’s won the 1977 FIA Cup for Rally Drivers. Year after year, the Mountain Rally developed into one of the most prominent rallies in Lebanon and the region until 1992.
In 1993, the Mountain Rally was renamed “Rally of Lebanon” and was enrolled in the Middle East Rally Championship; it witnessed the participation of French rally drivers Jean Ragnotti and Alain Oreille; Finnish rally legend Tommi Makkinen took part in the super special stage.
International drivers made several appearances in later years, with 1993 European Rally Champion Pierre-César Baroni entering the 1995 edition of the rally, and Petter Solberg the 1998 event in which he came 2nd. The Arab and international participation continued with Emirati drivers Mohammed Bin Sulayem, Abdullah and Khalid Al Qassimi and Suhail Al Maktoum, Saudi driver Abdullah Bakhashab, Qatari Saeed Al-Hajri and fellow countryman Nasser Al-Attiyah, Frenchman Yves Loubet and Italian driver Piero Liatti, in addition to local talents including Roger Feghali, Jean-Pierre Nasrallah, Samir Ghanem, Nabil Karam, Maurice “Bagheera” Sehnaoui, Abdo Feghali, Michel Saleh and Doumit Bou Doumit.
This year, the organizers are hoping for foreign participation during the 36th Rally of Lebanon, which, according to critics, has become the “star” Middle Eastern rally with great media coverage and FIA supervision. The rally has impressed the FIA throughout the years thanks to its distinctive organization and remarkable level.