BYAUSTIN LYNCH
In less than nine weeks, the roads and laneways of Fermanagh and its surrounding counties will become the focus for motorsport fans around the globe as the World Rally Championship (WRC) returns to the North-West for Rally Ireland which runs from 29th January to 1st February, 2009.
The entries for the event officially opened last Sunday, 30th November, and this has signalled the countdown to an event that five years ago Ireland, let alone Fermanagh, never thought was possible.
Rally Ireland encourages entrants, and all details and regulations to enter can be found at 'www.rallyireland.org'. The closing date for entries is 23rd December 2008.
In November 2007, the World Rally Championship came to Ireland for the first time with Fermanagh playing a huge part. In its debut year as part of the WRC, Rally Ireland 2007 was voted the second best event in the WRC season.
Its global audience reached 62.8 million, the highest viewing figures for any round of Championship that season. This meant that Fermanagh was in the forefront of people's minds in more than 180 countries around the world.
In 2009, for the first time, WRC Champion Sebastien Loeb will find himself not starting his world title assault in the glamorous surroundings of Monte Carlo, but in the beautiful and extremely challenging terrain of the north west of Ireland.
In 2007, over 250,000 spectators flocked to Fermanagh and the North West from across the globe. This brought ¤48million worth of economic benefit to the region and the country in general, and, given the current economic climate, Rally Ireland 2009 is going to provide a huge boost to the country and the area.
Again, for the second time in a year and a half, Fermanagh will be the centre point for a World class sports event that the whole region can enjoy for free.
More than 250,000 spectators attended Rally Ireland in November 2007 and generated more than ¤48/£38 million for the local economy. Some 3,000 volunteers and marshalls gave up their time for the event, valued at ¤726,000/£576,000.
Rally Ireland was also the most watched round of the 2007 WRC, with 62.8 million viewers in more than 180 countries following this unique cross-border event.
