The 50th year of Rallye Český Krumlov is knocking on the door and its program is already known. The competition will start on Friday, May 19, 2023, for the first time directly from náměstí (square) Svornosti, which is the very heart of the historic centre of the breathtaking city, sometimes also called the Pearl on the Vltava River.
Lovely, difficult, but a bit timeworn. This used to be the characteristic of special stages of Rallye Český Krumlov in the last years – and it shouldn’t be the impression from this year’s version. Their difficulty will sure remain high and the organizers hope that the tracks will not lose their allure either – on the contrary. However, there will be big changes that should further improve the jubilee 50th year of the event. The ceremonial start itself will undoubtedly be a great experience for crews and spectators, as it will take place for the first time in history in the very centre of the city on náměstí (square) Svornosti. Thanks to that, rallye cars will show up directly in the unmistakable surroundings of one of the most romantic cities in Central Europe in the afternoon of Friday, May 19.
It is from here where the fast cars will start for special stages, among them also for the proven stages of Rožmitál and Svatý Ján. However, after a pause of several years, the demanding special stage Citajl is also returning to the schedule that will be moreover run in an extended form and in the opposite direction compared to the year 2019. The first section of the event will be completed by the attractive test at the Exhibition ground (Výstaviště) in České Budějovice where also the service area will be located again. The spectators will be able to enjoy technical passages among pavilions for several times, also thanks to passages of the colourful starting field of so called legends, i.e. cars whose time will not be measured. On Friday, rallye racers fighting for the best times will also present themselves at the Exhibition Ground, and after finishing the special stage (and possibly after their cars are repaired in the service area) they will once again go to the special stages Rožmitál, Citajl and Ján. In the meantime, however, the sun will set, so the crews will get tested on these demanding tracks even after dark.
Also on Saturday, visitors to the České Budějovice Exhibition Ground will be able to see many competition cars passing by. Legends will rush through the local stage once, “sharp cars” even twice in the midday break between the morning and afternoon sections. However, just as the morning begins, racers will have to tackle the famous special stage Malšín which returns to the time schedule after many years. This won’t be the only novelty on Saturday. This year’s version of the special stage Malonty will seem familiar only to crews with really very long experience. The positions of start and finish will be swapped compared to usual, as it was in 2005 for the last time when the direction from Rychnov to Pohorská Ves was used. To add to the news, also the special stage Kohout will be reversed in comparison to last years; after finishing it, the crews will get some rest during regrouping in Kaplice. Also here cars will show up directly on the lovely square that is well known also thanks to Grand Prix Kaplice that takes place during the autumn classic cars race South Bohemia Classic. This time, however, the centre of Kaplice will be reserved primarily for rallye cars that will be headed for their team backgrounds in České Budějovice from here.
During Saturday afternoon the racers will have to tackle once again the demanding stages of Malonty and Kohout, and the reward for the successful ones will be, of course, the traditional finish ramp in Jelení zahrada of Český Krumlov. The thrilling atmosphere will then culminate on Saturday, May 20, 2023 during the evening prizegiving ceremony there, and with their beautiful cups, competitors will be able to head towards, for example, the traditional Rallye afterparty to the City Lounge club. The competition will be at its end and its visitors will start absorbing their impressions, competitors will begin to exchange their experiences.
Karel Špaček, media team
Press release No. 3