Rallye de France Alsace - Preview
Rallye de France Alsace, the 11th round of the FIA World Rally Championship, takes the contenders back to full Tarmac for the second time this season.
Like 2012, the super special stage in the heart of Strasbourg kicks off the action on Thursday, preceding three full days of competition. On Friday the crews head out on the Bas-Rhin and Vosges roads and on Saturday just a remote service in Colmar splits the two identical loops of three stages in the Haut-Rhin. The longest day of the rally is then rounded off with the short 4.65 kilometre Mulhouse stage and this is also where the FIA Junior WRC Championship crews will conclude the competitive element of their event. The final day of competition on Sunday is the shortest and ends on the streets of Haguenau, birthplace of reigning FIA World Rally Champion Sébastien Loeb.
The Frenchman has chosen his home round of the FIA World Rally Championship to say ‘au revoir’ to an outstanding career in the series, one that has netted him and co-driver Daniel Elena nine world titles. The duo will be back behind the wheel of the #1 Citroën DS3 WRC and pitted against Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia, Championship leaders for Volkswagen Motorsport. For the third time this season, the pairing has the opportunity to claim the title on what is sure to be the most intensely-fought round of the year.
The FIA WRC 3 and WRC 2 contenders will also be action and, as the Championships head towards their conclusion, the true picture in the classifications will start to emerge.
RALLYE DE FRANCE ALSACE – ROUTE GRAPHICS
CHANGES TO THE ROUTE SINCE 2012
The special stages for the 2013 event remain largely the same as 2012, with minor modifications on all but four of the stages. Uniquely, the Strasbourg Super Special Stage which opens the event on Thursday afternoon runs as the Power Stage, in which additional Championship points are awarded to the fastest three drivers. It is worth noting that these top three drivers must be in the Final Official Classification to retain the Power Stage points, and points will not be re-allocated if they are not classified.
RALLY DATA
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Total distance: Stage distance: Number of stages: |
1,264.30 km 312.14 km (24.69%) 20 |
MEDIA ACCREDITATION
The Accreditation Centre is located at Rue Emile Mathis - 67201 Eckbolsheim, Strasbourg (GPS: N 48°35.408’ E 007°40.803’). The opening hours are:
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Tuesday 1 October Wednesday 2 October Thursday 3 October Friday 4 October |
12:00 – 18:00 hrs 08:00 – 19:00 hrs 07:00 – 19:00 hrs 07:30 – 17:00 hrs |
RALLYE DE FRANCE TIMETABLE AND MEDIA OPPORTUNITIES ORGANISED BY THE FIA
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Wednesday 2 October Mandatory Photo briefing for national and rally by rally photographers, Rest Area, Media Centre Thursday 3 October Mandatory shakedown (P1 and P2 drivers) Optional shakedown (P1, P2 and P3 drivers) Optional shakedown (P3, non-priority and Junior WRC drivers) FIA Press Conference, Press Room Autograph session (P3 and non-priority drivers), SSS1 Autograph session (P1 and P2 drivers), SSS1 Drivers’ Parade (P1 drivers), SSS1 Start and opening super special (Power) stage, Strasbourg City Friday 4 October First car arrives for mid-day service, re-group and Media Zone, Zénith First car arrives for final service and Media Zone End of day press conference, Service Park Saturday 5 October First car arrives for remote service, re-group and Media Zone, Colmar First car arrives for re-group, Mulhouse First car arrives for final service and Media Zone, Zénith End of day press conference, Service Park Podium and prize-giving, FIA Junior WRC Championship, Zénith Sunday 6 October First car arrives for re-group, Haguenau (no Media Zone) First car arrives for final service and Media Zone FIA Press Conference, Press Room Prize-giving and podium ceremony, Zénith |
17:00 hrs 07:30-09:30 hrs 09:30-10:30 hrs 10:30-13:00 hrs 12:00 hrs 14:15-14:45 hrs 15:00-15:30 hrs 15:40-15:50 hrs 15:50 hrs 12:42 hrs 18:12 hrs During the 45’ service 11:44 hrs 17:11 hrs 20:20 hrs During the 45’ service Approx. 22:00 hrs 11:28 hrs 15:35 hrs 16:30 hrs 17:00 hrs |
FIA PRESS CONFERENCE ATTENDANCE
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Thursday 3 October Sunday 6 October |
Sébastien Loeb, Citroën Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team Sébastien Ogier, Volkswagen Motorsport Thierry Neuville, Qatar World Rally Team Jari-Matti Latvala, Volkswagen Motorsport Robert Kubica, FIA WRC 2 Championship Elfyn Evans, FIA WRC 2 Championship Sébastien Chardonnet, FIA WRC 3 Championship Keith Cronin, FIA WRC 3 Championship Pontus Tidemand, FIA Junior WRC Championship Michael Burri, FIA Junior WRC Championship Winning FIA WRC 2 Championship crew Winning FIA WRC 3 Championship crew Top three crews in the overall classification Representative of the winning entrant |
ADDITIONAL MEDIA OPPORTUNITIES
‘Meet the Crews’: On Friday and Saturday the top three drivers will attend a ‘Meet the Crews’ session for media and fans. This will take place on the WRC Stage in the service park at the earliest opportunity during the 45’ service.
Autograph Signing Session: On Friday and Saturday selected crews will be available for a 15 minute autograph session. This will take place in the service park during the end of day 45 minute service at the teams’ service areas.
FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP CLASSIFICATIONS
The provisional classifications for all the WRC Championships can be found on the following link:
http://www.fia.com/championship/world-rally-championship/classifications-0
STAGE CHART
Shortly after the finish of the event on Sunday, a downloadable stage chart showing the progressive positions of the leading crews during the rally will be available. This is copyright free for editorial purposes and available at the following link:
http://www.fia.com/championship/world-rally-championship/2013/rallye-de-france-stage-chart-2013
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