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ABU DHABI (UAE). Monday, March 28, 2011: Two Omani rally stars are gearing up to take on one of the world’s toughest cross-country rallies, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Over five days this April, and on separate teams, Nizar Al Shanfari and Ahmed Al Hajri will fly the flag for the sultanate as they fight their way across some of the harshest and most visually stunning terrain in the Middle East.
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“Omani participation is very important for the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge,” said Mohammed Ben Sulayem, FIA Vice-president and Chairman of the Desert Challenge Organising Committee. “The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is one of our region’s most important motorsport events and we want our fellow GCC countries to be as proud of it as we are in the UAE.
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“We invite our Omani competitors to treat the UAE as a second home, and we hope their intimate knowledge of Gulf geography will help them achieve great results for their countries and this region.”
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Local knowledge will play a big part for driver Al Shanfari, who is a seasoned rally competitor, having a real name for himself over the years in the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC). In the 1999 MERC season, he finished first in class and second overall, and repeated the feat the following year. After shifting his focus to cross-country rallying, he has participated in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge four times, with a second place in the T1 class in 2004 being the highlight.
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This year, Al Shanfari is determined to do even better, and has been preparing for the extremely demanding Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge for the past nine months. He will take one some of the tallest dunes in the world in a Dutch-built Fast and Speed T1 buggy alongside his Qatari co-pilot, Nasr Al Kuwari, who also has a wealth of experience in MERC.
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“It’s a great feeling to know that I’m one of only two Omani participants at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge,” said Al Shanfari. “The pressure can build up with the responsibility, but I’ve been training really hard and I’m ready for it. You never know what’s going to hit you when you’re out there, and we’ve been working on the buggy for a long time, tweaking the engine and suspension settings, so we’re confident.”
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Also waving the Omani flag at this year’s Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge will be Ahmed Al Hajri, who will navigate for the UAE’s Matar Al Mansouri in a Nissan Patrol as they tackle some of the toughest terrain in the world, and compete in the greatest spirit of Gulf co-operation.
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As the season opener for the FIM Cross Country Rallies World Championship and round two of the FIA Cross Country Rally World Cup, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is one of the world’s most spectacular cross-country rallies. The mystic silence of the rolling dunes and picturesque vistas will once again be broken by the bellowing roar of horsepower as more than 100 desert-going cars, bikes and trucks battle it out for top honours.*

Set against the backdrop of Abu Dhabi’s stunning Al Gharbia Western Region, and based adjacent to the luxurious outpost of the Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge pits the world’s very best cross-country rally drivers and riders against one another for a spectacular contest across one of the largest uninterrupted sand-masses on the planet. *
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The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge attracts some of the most famous rally drivers and riders from across the globe, this year including Russian Leonid Novitskiy, Spaniard Marc Coma and Stéphane Peterhansel from France. It will take place from April 1-7, and consists of four categories: bikes, quads, cars and trucks. To encourage regional participation, the organising committee this year declared that GCC nationals would not have to pay entrance fees for this year’s competition. *
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The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is organised by the Automobile and Touring Club of United Arab Emirates (ATCUAE) under the title sponsorship of Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), and is held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler’s Representative in the Western Region.*
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The rally is backed by a high-profile line-up of sponsors and supporters that includes Al Gharbia Municipality, ADNOC, Rotana – Yas Island, Al Ain Water, TAG Heuer, Explorer, Fed Ex and Nissan – Nissan’s Patrol, dubbed The Hero of All Terrain, is the official vehicle of the rally. Meanwhile, a landmark partnership with Eurosport TV will see daily global broadcasts of all the 2011 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge action.








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