TRNC Ready for Major Rally

The press conference for the Rally North Cyprus, to be held from 1-3 June with Gülgün Süt as title sponsor, took place at the Golden Tulip Hotel.

The conference was attended by North Cyprus Touring and Automobile Association (KKTOK) President Tigin Kişmir, Sports Department Director Alkan Değirmencioğlu, KKTOK Vice President Mahmut Sezinler, KKTOK Sporting Director Canben Özpaşa, Gülgün Süt Director Yunus Betmezoğlu and KKTOK driver Deniz Fahri.

Kişmir: For the first time, we are taking part directly in the Turkish Rally Championship

KKTOK President Tigin Kişmir was the first to speak, thanking the press for their interest in the conference and hoping that their contribution would continue to grow. Kişmir said that Rally North Cyprus, which took part in previous years of the Turkish Rally Championship as a candidate event, would this year participate directly for the first time, and noted that it is one of the highest-scoring events after the World Rally Championship. Kişmir also said the event appears on the Turkish calendar under the name Mediterranean Rally, and that it is a source of pride both for himself and for the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Kişmir said: "We have constantly complained that Turkey won't play a match with us. We will overcome that, pull off this source of pride and look ahead. Through the legacy this event leaves for the coming years, we will work to ensure it continues on a lasting basis. This year there will be very different flavours for the event, with press, drivers and officials from Turkey joining us." Kişmir added that, with folklore, music, history, culture, food and geography, they would give the Turkish Cypriot people a wonderful weekend, and thanked Gülgün Süt Ürünleri, which has no background in motorsport but provides very strong support to it.

Değirmencioğlu: It is exciting for us

Sports Department Director Alkan Değirmencioğlu said in his remarks at the press conference that they were proud to be with KKTOK, that the rally preparations had reached their final stage, and he warmly congratulated President Tigin Kişmir and his entire team for their intensive work. Değirmencioğlu said it was exciting for them that a round of the Turkish Rally Championship would be held in North Cyprus, and that this was a great achievement, adding that it was very important to sustain it. Wishing the event every success, Değirmencioğlu expressed his belief that it would be the first of its kind in the country, but not the last.

"The country being represented is the TRNC"

Sezinler concluded: The country represented through motorsport, the only discipline through which we can open up to the world, is the TRNC. I believe the state should provide maximum support for this. If the car is not damaged, a rally costs a driver at least 12-13 thousand TL. So, while this is such a self-sacrificing sport, motorsport needs a little more attention. Our efforts to promote our country in the best possible way in the world press, and to show that we do this job very well, are plain to see. This week it will be seen that the TRNC will experience a completely different kind of weekend."

Fahri: "We want to win"

Deniz Fahri, who competes in the Turkish Rally Championship and is a source of pride for the country, said in his remarks at the press conference that the rally is a very important event for the country, said the drivers would do everything they could in the event, and invited everyone to come and watch the racing. Fahri said one reason they compete in Turkey is to gain experience more quickly, that they want to represent the TRNC there, and that his target is to win Rally North Cyprus.

Özpaşa: A proud occasion for us

KKTOK Sporting Director Canben Özpaşa said that, following the excellent event in 2017, Rally North Cyprus had been added to the calendar as the second round of the Turkish Rally Championship, describing this as a proud occasion. Özpaşa also said that from tomorrow, Yağız Avcı and Burak Çukurova, among the world's well-known drivers, would be arriving in the country, and noted that it was very important that North Cyprus could offer them this opportunity.
250 people will work on the 454.45 km event

Özpaşa said the rally would take place in Kyrenia, Tirmen, Esentepe, Nicosia, Balıkesir, Serdarlı and Görneç, and continued: Rally North Cyprus starts from Kyrenia Marina on the night of Friday 1 June, with the Kyrenia city stage run on the first day. With the service park at Atatürk Stadium in Nicosia, on Saturday 2 June the crews will tackle the Tirmen and Esentepe stages twice each, and complete the day with the spectator stage inside the Nicosia city walls once. On the final day, Sunday 3 June, the crews will run the Balıkesir, Serdarlı and Görneç stages twice each in that order, before heading back to Kyrenia Marina for the finish of the rally. With a total length of 454.45 kilometres, the crews will compete over 112.38 kilometres of competitive distance across 12 special stages. Özpaşa added that preparations for a tough and long event were complete and that 250 people would work on the rally.

Betmezoğlu: We are with you with financial and moral support

Yunus Betmezoğlu, director of the rally's title sponsor Gülgün Süt Ürünleri, said in his speech that they had achieved good results as a sponsor last year and would again be title sponsor this year. Betmezoğlu said Gülgün Süt stands with the North Cyprus Rally Championship with financial and moral support, and that they would continue to be involved in events of this kind.