After months of preparation, Britain’s round of the 2013 FIA World Rally Championship is primed and ready for some spectacular action as the series reaches its climax in the legendary Welsh forests.
The newly crowned 2013 WRC champion Sebastien Ogier heads the star-studded field for the event and viewers across the UK can follow all the action from Wales as ITV4 and S4C will be screening daily highlights
Now restored to its traditional position as the final round of the FIA World Rally Championship and based at a new home in north Wales, British rallying’s showpiece event will feature the cream of drivers and teams from right around the globe.
The high-speed show blasts off in Snowdonia on Thursday evening following a glittering Ceremonial Start in front of Conwy Castle, with the winner crowned back in Llandudno on Sunday afternoon.
This year’s itinerary features 24 competitive stages more than half of which are either totally new or not been featured in the World Championship since the 1990s.
Fast and undulating, the roads are often made slippery by rainfall, ice and even snow.
It begins on the North Wales coast then moves south to a trio of modern stages before travelling back up via a new family-oriented Spectator Stage in mid Wales followed by another Spectator Stage, this time in North Wales.
The rally reaches its climax with a blast around the spectacular Great Orme toll road.
No fewer than 64 crews will contest the full four-day WRC rally, joining the capacity entry of 100 amateurs already confirmed for the pair of concurrent National rallies.
The total field of more than 160 entrants will not only provide those entered with some fierce competition but also ensure plenty of thrilling excitement for tens of thousands of rally fans.
The newly crowned 2013 world champion Sebastien Ogier – who spearheads Volkswagen Motorsport’s three-pronged attack on its Wales Rally GB debut – tops the outstanding WRC entry.
Two previous Wales Rally GB winners – Mikko Hirvonen (Citroen) and Jari-Matti Latvala (VW) – are also targeting further victories in the fearsome Welsh forests.
Also contesting the event are former F1 driver Robert Kubica and Olympic gold medalist Amy Williams, neither of whom are strangers to success.
Having proved himself in the lesser WRC2 category, Kubica steps up to a factory specification Citroen DS3 WRC for the very first time.
Meanwhile Williams – who in Vancouver 2010 became the first British gold medallist in an individual event at the Winter Olympics for 30 years – swaps her history-making skeleton for the co-driver’s seat alongside Sky Sports News F1 analyst Tony Jardine.
While there are no UK crews among the premier Manufacturers’ entries, the WRC2 showcases the best of British talent with the experienced Mark Higgins joining two of the sports most promising future stars – Tom Cave and Elfyn Evans – in a trio of evenly matched Ford Fiesta R5s.
Wales Rally GB’s move to north Wales from its long-standing Cardiff base not only features a new Headquarters and Service Park in Deeside, but also the inclusion of three exciting new, family-friendly RallyFest Stages at Sweet Lamb (Friday), Chirk Castle (Saturday) and Kinmel Park (Sunday).
Aimed at providing a full day’s entertainment for all ages, these RallyFests include big screens, live music, car displays plus a host of other fun-filled attractions.
For Wales Rally GB 2013, both ITV4 and Welsh-language channel S4C will broadcast extensive highlights of all the thrilling action from north Wales.
ITV4 will bring viewers all the thrilling action from the final round of the 2013 World Rally Championship season in Wales.
The WRC returned to ITV after a six-year absence earlier this year after the sport was left with no UK television partner at the beginning of the 2013 season.
It is the first time that daily highlights of Wales Rally GB have featured on a UK-wide terrestrial channel since 2005, with ITV, Channel 4 and the BBC all having screened extended coverage of the event in the past.
ITV4’s coverage of the 2013 edition of this British motorsport institution consists of two 30-minute highlights programmes on Saturday and Sunday mornings looking back over the previous day’s action.
Then on Monday evening, a one-hour programme will review the entire rally, featuring highlights of the final day’s stages which will decide the winner of the final round of the 2013 season.
Kevin Piper presents ITV4’s highlights programmes with commentary from Paul King and Jon Desborough, plus stage reports and interviews from Neil Cole and Julian Porter.
All three ITV4 programmes will be available to watch via ITV’s catch-up service ITV Player for up to 30 days after transmission.
S4C will also broadcast daily Welsh-language coverage in its Ralio+ programmes throughout the weekend of Wales Rally GB 2013.
The channel’s coverage includes a special preview show on Thursday evening, plus nightly highlights from Friday through to Sunday.
For the preview show, presenters Emyr Penlan and Lowri Morgan will be in the thick of all the excitement at the Service Park on Deeside.
They will be bringing viewers all the highlights of the qualifying stages, the Opening Ceremony and the first three stages of the rally itself.
Over the weekend, Howard Davies will report from the stages across Wales, while expert analysis comes from Phil Pugh and Gwyndaf Evans, with Wyn Gruffudd on commentary duties.
S4C’s Ralio+ website will feature all the latest news and updates from the event, with links to its social media sites and further details of its Wales Rally GB coverage.
To receive S4C outside Wales, you can watch it for free via satellite or online – on Sky 134 or via the S4C website.
You can also receive S4C on Freesat, Channel 120 and watch most S4C programmes for up to 35 days after broadcast on s4c.co.uk/clic.
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