Information » Sport & Leisure » International Competitions » Wales Rally GB
- The Wales Rally Great Britain is the UK leg of the World Rally Championship
- The World Rally Championship is a series of automobile rally races across the world, which takes place annually and ends with a world champion driver and manufacturer
- The UK leg was first held in Wales in 2005, succeeding the RAC Rally of previous years. Wales has the contract to host the UK leg until at least 2011
- Wales' hosting of the UK leg until 2011 is estimated to be worth £40 million to the Welsh economy
- The World Rally Championship is the second highest-profile world motor sports event
- The event is run in South Wales on narrow forest roads and roads in the countryside around Cardiff and Swansea, t he Swansea Rally Centre at Felindre and the Millennium Stadium
- The weather is usually unpredictable, and varies from pouring rain to hail and snow to sunshine. The roads become extremely muddy and slippery during rainy weather, making the Wales Rally particularly difficult in the international tournament
Did you know?
- The first World Rally Championship was in 1973
- The Wales Rally GB is the largest single event of the British sporting year and requires around 5,000 volunteer officials and marshals and attracts at least half a million spectators
