The African Rally Championship (ARC) is an international automobile rally championship run under the auspicies of the

FIA FIA is the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (English: International Automobile Federation), the world's governing body for all forms of motor sport where four or more wheels are used. Fia or FIA may also refer to: People * Fia Backst ...

. The championship was first held in 1981 and won by

Shekhar Mehta Chandra Shekhar Mehta (20 June 1945 – 12 April 2006) was a Kenyan rally driver. He was born in Uganda and won the Safari Rally a record five times (1973, 1979–82), including four consecutively, and in 1981 finished fifth in the World Rally ...

. The most successful driver in the championship's history is Zambian driver

Satwant Singh Satwant Singh Bhakar (1962 – 6 January 1989) was one of the bodyguards, along with Beant Singh, who assassinated the Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, at her New Delhi residence on 31 October 1984. Assassination The motivation for th ...

with eight championships. The reigning champion is Kenyan driver Manvir Baryan. The championship has been held widely across the African continent, including the island of Madagascar, although few events are held in or north of the

Sahara , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

. The championship has frequently incorporated World Rally Championship events, particularly Africa's two most popular rallies, the

Safari Rally The Safari Rally is a rally held in Kenya. It was first held in 1953 as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. The event was part of the World Rally Championship from 1973 until 2002, before returning in 2021. It is historically r ...

in Kenya and the Ivory Coast Rally in Côte d'Ivoire. It is most popular in former British colonies. Presently the African rally championship events are held in Côte d'Ivoire, South Africa, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda.

Events

* Rally of Tanzania * Pearl of Africa Rally (Uganda) *

(Kenya) * Zimbabwe Challenge * Zambia International Motor Rally * Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally * Equator Rally (Kenya) * Mountain Gorilla Rally (Rwanda) *

Rallye Côte d'Ivoire The Rallye Côte d'Ivoire, perhaps better known as the Rallye Bandama as it was originally called, or the Ivory Coast Rally is a rally race held annually in Côte d'Ivoire in Africa. In common with other races on the continent, it is known for its ...

* Rally South Africa * Tara Rally (Namibia) * Rallye International de Madagascar

Champions

References

External links

Official website
{{African Championships FIA Zone rally championships Rally Championship Recurring sporting events established in 1981