The living legends of Safari’s glorious decades revved up the event’s platinum jubilee celebrations in style at Uhuru Park's Ceremonial Start in the presence of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
Title-winning drivers, co-drivers, and some notable Safari personalities of yore were among those in attendance.
Five-time Safari Rally champion Carl “Flash” Tundo — who is also the chairman of the Organising Committee and a WRC2 entrant-noted that the platinum jubilee anniversary will capture the memories of a myriad of enthusiasts around the world for generations.
Tundo, who was the first off Uhuru Park's ramp at 12:45 pm, said: “The Safari has tested the skills of the world’s most decorated drivers and we are hoping that this year the challenge will be even tougher. Let’s make Safari great on its platinum jubilee.”
The Ceremonial Start paraded some of Kenya’s legends of the sport including the trailblazing all-female crew of Ann Taeith and Sylvia King, who competed at around the same time with the late Orie Rogo Manduli, Kenya’s first black indigenous female driver.
Taieth and Sylvia became the first ever women to win a round of the Kenya National Rally Championship in 1984.
Also in attendance was Jim Kahumbura, Kenya’s 1998 Group N champion and Surinder Thatthi, an African Rally Championship championship-winning co-driver with the late Satwant Singh, Zambia's eight-time drivers' champion.
The former Managing Director of the WRC Promoter Oliver Ciesla, who was instrumental in Kenya’s successful bid to rejoin the 13-leg World Rally Championship (WRC) was a special guest.
“May I take this opportunity to salute the men and women who have been part of these momentous years of Safari. The living and departed legends truly made this country proud,” said Phineas Kimathi, the CEO Of WRCSafari.
Deputy President Gachagua said the iconic Safari continues to make an integral facet of Kenyan sports tourism, pumping Sh6 billion into the Kenyan economy annually.
Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba thanked Ciesla for his efforts to have Safari Rally back on the global calendar.
