Milestone 50th Cyprus Rally begins

The start of the 50th anniversary Cyprus Rally took place on Friday afternoon at the old town hall of Nicosia, in Eleftheria square.

First down the ramp in a Volkswagen Polo GTI R5 was seven-time winner of the race, Nasser Al-Attiyah from Qatar, with co-driver Mathieu Baumel from Andorra.

He was followed by fellow Middle East Rally Championship title contender Abdullah Al-Rawahi (Oman) and co-driver Ata Al-Hmoud (Jordan), in a Škoda Fabia R5. In the 2021 Rally Cyprus, Al-Attiyah retired on Day 1, while Al-Rawahi had taken 3rd place.

The start was given by H.E. Mr. Ali Yousuf Almull, Ambassador of the State of Qatar and the Mayor of Nicosia Constantinos Yiorkadjis in the presence of the president of the Cypriot Automobile Association, Antonis Michaelides and the winner of the first international Cyprus Rally 1971 Christos Kyrmitsis.

Fans of the rally who were in the centre of the capital had the opportunity to see up close the cars of this year’s event, while in the area of the square an exhibition was set-up, with historical cars that participated in previous decades in the Cyprus Rally and photos of important moments of the race.

Following the start ceremony, the cars returned to the service park and parc fermé of the event, opposite the Police headquarters in Aglantzia.

Racing action starts at 09:33 on Saturday morning, when the first car will enter the first special stage, in Xyliatos.

The 50th Cyprus Rally has a total length of 195.36 kilometres.

This year’s event is sponsored by Honda – Galatariotis, ANCO Catering Equipment, Cablenet, Stop Fire, Andreopoulos Signs, Farmakas Natural Spring Water, Jeep and TGI Friday’s. It is supported by the Nicosia and Aglantzia Municipalities.

Following the start ceremony, the cars returned to the service park and parc fermé of the event, opposite the Police headquarters in Aglantzia. The racing action starts at 09:33 on Saturday morning (07/10), when the first car will enter the first special stage, in Xyliatos. The 50th Cyprus Rally has a total length of 195.36 kilometers.

The route of the 2023 50th Cyprus Rally:

Length (km) First car due

Friday 6 October

Ceremonial start Nicosia – 18:00

Saturday 7 October

SS1 Xyliatos 1 8,05 09:33

SS2 Kapouras 1 19,86 10:01

SS3 Kourdali 1 21,01 11:04

SS4 Xyliatos 2 8,05 14:12

SS5 Kapouras 2 19,86 14:40

SS6 Kourdali 2 21,01 15:43

Sunday 8 October