The 2008 Dakar Rally race has been canceled due to security concerns and a “direct threats against the race issued by terrorist groups,” the Amaury Sport Organization (ASO), which sponsors the race, said Friday. This is the first time in the Dakar’s 30-year history that the controversial car-motorcycle Sahara Desert race has been cancelled. “Following several consultations with the French government, in particular the ministry of foreign affairs, and taking into account its firm recommendations, the organizers of the Dakar have taken the decision to cancel the 2008 edition of the rally,” the ASO said.
The race was scheduled to begin in Lisbon on Saturday, January 5th, but the murder of four French tourists in Mauritania on December 24, 2007 – which has been linked to al-Qaeda – prompted the French government to issue a travel advisory for the country. Nine of the rally’s stages were due to pass through Mauritania, en route for Dakar and the scheduled finish on January 20.
“The ASO’s first responsibility is to guarantee the safety of all: That of the populations in the countries visited, of the amateur and professional competitors, of the technical assistance personnel, of the journalists, partners and rally collaborators… the choice of security is not, has never been and will never be a subject of compromise at the heart of the Dakar rally,” continued the ASO’s statement.
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