Lithuanians Samsonas / Varža come through to an unbelieveable Rally Talsi victory

Sunday was the second and final day of the fiftieth anniversary running of Rally Talsi, a Latvian and Lithuanian Rally Championship round, consisting of the last five special stages and the awards ceremony. On this day, the rally route went through Lībagi, Laidze, Ģibuļi and Lauciene regions before returning to Talsi to honour the fastest crews of this fiftieth anniversary event – Lithuanians Martynas Samsonas / Mindaugas Varža, Finns Kalle Rovanpera / Risto Pietilainen and another Lithuanian crew, Vytautas Švedas / Žilvinas Sakalauskas, who were not only third in the overall classification, but also had the honour to raise the travelling Champions Cup. This is the third time Švedas wins the trophy, meaning he will now keep it permanently.

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Rally Talsi leaders separated by just 1.06 seconds after leg one

Fiftieth anniversary event of Rally Talsi, a Latvian and Lithuanian Rally Championship round, got underway today, with the ceremonial start, priority crew start position selection and the first six special stages. Leg one concluded with the spectator favourite Talsi City Special stage, after which the young Finnish rally talent Kalle Rovanpera moved into the overall lead. Vytautas Švedas from Lithuania is currently in second place, just 1.06 seconds from the lead. Another Lithuanian, Giedrius Notkus, is third overnight. Rally Talsi will conclude on Sunday with five more special stages.

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Lithuanians Samsonas / Varža first to choose Rally Talsi starting position

Today, the fiftieth anniversary of Rally Talsi, the Latvian and Lithuanian Rally Championship round, began with the qualification stage. Among twenty five participants, the fastest time was set by the Lithuanian crew of Martynas Samsonas / Mindaugas Varža, who are driving an all-wheel drive BMW M3X. The second quickest time was set by the crew of talented Finn Kalle Rovanpera, while Latvians Raimonds Kisiels / Arnis Ronis were third fastest.

On the start line – Rally Talsi 50

Today, the fiftieth anniversary of Rally Talsi, a Latvian and Lithuanian Rally Championship round, begins with the qualifying. A total of 59 crews from seven countries have registered for the event, in addition to 32 crews that will compete in the historic car regularity rally Youngtimer Rally Talsi. Stages will be run on Saturday and Sunday, May 21 and 22, when we will find out not only the overall winner of Rally Talsi, but also the winner of the Champions Cup, which will be decided between four champions this year – Latvians Vorobjovs and Lielkājis, Lithuanian Švedas and Belarussian Viazovich.

Vorobjovs, Švedas, Lielkājis, or Viazovich: who will take home the Champions Cup?

The fiftieth anniversary of Rally Talsi will, as usual, also contain a special something for the fans – the Rally of Champions, or the battle for the Champions Cup. This year, we will have four current champions competing against each other: Latvian rally champion Guntis Lielkājis, Lithuanian rally champions Jānis Vorobjovs and Vytautas Švedas, as well as Belarussian rally champion Siarhei Viazovich. Rally of Champions has been a part of Rally Talsi since 2009, and it is a battle for the Champions Challenge Cup, which is awarded to the fastest champion.

Youngtimer cars to take part in Rally Talsi

On May 21, first day of the fiftieth anniversary Rally Talsi, the historic Youngtimer class cars will tackle the stages, competing in a regularity rally. A maximum of 33 historic cars will go through the Saturday’s rally stages two hours before the rally cars, and will do each stage twice.

Rallycross talents Baumanis and Nitišs to show off supercars on Talsi streets

Rally Talsi route will lead through the narrow streets of Talsi this year, with day one of the fiftieth anniversary of the event containing a special present from the two Latvian FIA World Rallycross Championship drivers – Jānis Baumanis and Reinis Nitišs. The young rallycross stars will take part in a Neste World RX of Latvia demonstration showcase, going through the city special stage twice and showing the technical capabilities of all-wheel drive Supercar class vehicles to the local fans.

Rally Talsi 50 year anniversary to begin with the qualifying stage and start position selection

To commemorate the 50 year anniversary of Rally Talsi, which will host the Latvian Rally Championship and Lithuanian Rally Championship rounds this year, the event organiser RA EVENTS has included some spectacular novelties in the rally programme – a qualifying stage for priority crews, followed by a start position selection. These two racing elements have only been used in Latvia as part of the FIA European Rally Championship round Rally Liepāja. Rally Talsi, also known as the Rally of Champions, will take place in the Talsi region on May 21 and 22.

Rally Talsi rally passes now available

Tickets to the Latvian Rally Championship event Rally Talsi are available in Talsi and points of sale throughout Latvia. A rally pass that will give fans access to all the stages stages of the fiftieth anniversary Rally Talsi will cost 12.00 EUR if bought before May 15. Rally Talsi, also known as the Rally of Champions, will take place on May 21 and 22.

Rally Talsi to celebrate its 50th anniversary

The first official Rally Talsi document, Rally Guide 1, has been published, containing the necessary information about the event. The fiftieth anniversary event will not only be a Latvian championship event, but will also host some international series, and is set to take place on Saturday and Sunday, May 21 and 22.