INFO: This text was is an Automatic IA translation from the original Polish version available on www.bajapoland.com, Some errors are expected as the system is not perfect, so please check the official site .
Who, when and where will start in Columna Medica Baja Poland?
In just over a week, Columna Medica Baja Poland - the most important event in off-road rallying in our country and beyond - will kick off. The event, scheduled for August 23-25, includes a round of the FIA World Cup in Baja off-road rallies, as well as competitions included in the Polish and Czech championship calendars. We already know all the major details of the rally, including the cast and program.
Columna Medica Baja Poland has been for 13 years the most important, most prestigious, and most heavily attended off-road rally competition in Poland. The first edition of the event was held in 2009, and just three years later the rally gained international status, joining the FIA World Cup for Off-Road Rallying - the highest-ranking series in this discipline.
What has invariably attracted competitors from all over the world for many years now are the extremely diverse and demanding special sections set in the wilderness of the West Pomeranian region. The event has been repeatedly attended by the biggest stars of off-road rallies, including competitors from such distant countries as Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Qatar.
The already iconic routes in Szczecin, Dobra and Drawsko Pomorskie were contested by, among others, multiple Dakar Rally triumphants - Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel and Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah. All participants in the Polish round of the FIA World Cup unanimously emphasize the high level of challenge that the Columna Medica Baja Poland rivalry represents for the riders. Therefore, many participants treat this competition as a great form of preparation for the Dakar Rally, i.e. the toughest rally-marathon in the world.
Columna Medica Baja Poland 2024 - what is the event?
This year Baja Poland will be held for the sixteenth time. The competition is scheduled on the traditional date - at the end of August, specifically, on the penultimate weekend of summer vacation (August 23-25). The 2024 Columna Medica Baja Poland season is primarily the fourth of eight rounds of the FIA World Cup for Baja off-road rallies.
In addition to the participants of this prestigious international series, crews competing in the FIA Central European Zone Off-Road Championship (the fifth of eight rounds of the FIA CEZ) will also descend on Szczecin. The competition is also included in the calendars of the Polish (4th round of RMPST) and Czech championships (3rd round of MMCR). They are also an opportunity to fight for points for the classification of the Polish Off-Road Rally Cup (4th round of RPPST).
The event is also organized for motorcyclists, quad riders and crews in UTVs, who can compete in the 3rd round of the Polish Baja Rally Championship (MPRB), the 3rd round of the Polish Baja Rally Cup (PPRB) and the 3rd round of the Can-Am Baja Promo ATV and the 3rd round of the Baja Promo Adventure (ADV).
Can-Am Baja Promo is a unique initiative of the Baja Poland Foundation - the organizer of the competition. These are rallies in the formula of organized and professionally secured events for amateur crews. In this way, the foundation gives off-road driving enthusiasts the opportunity to test and improve their skills on demanding and professionally secured routes.
PROGRAM: What, where and when in Columna Medica Baja Poland 2024?
Competition in this year's edition of Columna Medica Baja Poland will begin with a spectacular, fan-packed prologue in Szczecin. The nearly 7-kilometer-long trial begins near Szafera Street, near the rally town at the Netto Arena. The first of the crews will set off on the route on Friday, August 23 at 3:00 p.m. A spectacular Can-Am Jump has been set up along the route, where the fastest vehicles can make jumps of up to 40 meters.
The Columna Medica Baja Poland kick-off ceremony is scheduled for 7:00 pm. Like last year, the ceremony will take place on Wały Chrobrego in Szczecin. Here, fans will be able to see all the vehicles taking part in the rally up close. In turn, the leading competitors here will choose the order in which they will set off on the event's route.
The key day at Columna Medica Baja Poland is Saturday, and this time will be no different. Two starts are scheduled for this day at a unique place for off-road rallies - the training ground in Drawsko Pomorskie. It is here that the rally's longest special section has been set. The 151-km-long sporting trial will be run twice - from 9:00 am and 1:45 pm.
In between the runs of the Drawsko Pomorskie circuit, the competitors will have a 45-minute service break, also located on the training ground (from 12:20, Tactical Exercise Range - Bucierz). This is also a great opportunity to see up close the rally machines and the mechanics working on them.
In the final stage (August 25), the competitors will cover the special section in the Dobra municipality twice - from Slawoszewo to Szczecin. The trial is just over 26 kilometers long, and is scheduled to start at 8:40 and 12:40.
The winners of the Columna Medica Baja Poland will be announced on Sunday, around 1:00 p.m. Half an hour later, the closing ceremony of the competition and the presentation of trophies will begin, which will take place on Wały Chrobrego in Szczecin.
OBSERVATION: Who will start in the Columna Medica Baja Poland 2024?
A total of as many as 127 entries - 47 more than last year - have been received by the competition organizers. Twenty-eight duos will compete for points in the FIA World Cup round of Baja off-road rallies. The list of participants in this competition is therefore more numerous than last year's by seven crews.
The competition in the FIA CEZ, the Polish championship and the Czech championship also attracted a larger group than in the 2023 season. The combined list of participants in these cycles includes 62 crews, including twelve simultaneously entered for the World Cup.
As many as fourteen crews will bring to Szczecin the strongest, fastest and most advanced cars with which to compete in the rounds of the FIA World Cup. We're talking about constructions classified in T1 and T1+ groups.
Topping the entry list is the Saudi-German duo Yazeed Al-Rajhi/Timo Gottschalk, who will start in a Toyota Hilux Overdrive. Another number has been assigned to the Joao Ferreira/Filipe Palmeiro crew. The Portuguese will use a MINI John Cooper Works Rally Plus prepared by the X-Raid team. The MINI this time will not be boarded by nine-time Baja Poland triumpher Krzysztof Holowczyc. The Olsztyn native, together with Łukasz Kurzeja, will drive a BMW X3. Also in the top five of the list of participants are Włodzimierz Grajek with Michał Goleniewski (Toyota Hilux) and a married couple - Michał and Julita Małuszyński in a MINI John Cooper Works Rally Plus.
The Columna Medica Baja Poland will also feature a clash in the heavyweight, truck class. Four rally monsters will take to the route. Tatra Evo3, Tatra Phoenix, Iveco Powerstar Torpedo and Tatra FF7 4x4. In the varied stake of participants in the Columna Medica Baja Poland there are also competitors in impressive SSV vehicles and those with rallycars based on serial constructions such as Mitsubishi Pajero, Toyota Land Cruiser and Dacia Duster.
13 motorcyclists will compete in the Polish Baja Rally Championship. The series will also feature two competitors on 4x4 quads and one with a vehicle powered solely by the rear axle.
In turn, two competitors on motorcycles and four drivers with 4x4 quads have signed up for the round of the Polish Cup in Baja rallies.
The stakes of the Can-Am Baja Promo series include six duos in cars, 20 crews in SSVs and two quad drivers.
A total of 236 competitors from 20 countries will participate in Columna Medica Baja Poland 2024....
OBSADA: listy zgłoszeń
Program Columna Medica Baja Poland 2024
Trasa: 655,29 km w tym 5 odcinków specjalnych o łącznej długości 354,54 km
Piątek, 23 sierpnia:
Sobota, 24 sierpnia:
Niedziela, 25 sierpnia:
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