Donegal International Rally
Encyclopedia
The Donegal International Rally is an annual sporting event held in County Donegal
, Ireland
. It is one of Ireland's oldest annual rally competitions and is a top event in the Irish Rallying calendar. It has a reputation for being one of the country's most challenging rallies. The event begins and concludes in Letterkenny
.
and a serious accident. The rally was abandoned in 2008 after a spectrator was hit by a driver.
In 2006 Toni Kelly became the youngest ever female participant in the Donegal International Rally. Kelly was 17 at the time of the event and a fifth-year student at Loreto Convent
in Letterkenny.
The rally attracts approximately 50,000 spectators each year. The event is estimated to be worth over €20 million to the Donegal economy each year. The event was previously sponsored by Shell
. The current sponsors of the Donegal International Rally are Topaz Energy
and The Mount Errigal Hotel.
, the other from Crossmaglen
, died when a car crashed into spectators at around 2.00pm. Three men were also injured. The remaining stages of the event were cancelled after the serious accident on Stage Two. Andrew Nesbitt was announced as winner as he led the rally at the time of the accident.
This led to the Motorsport Commission to inspect safety at all future events.
driver Elfyn Evans
, at 3.30pm. The accident happened at Ballyare, about four miles from Letterkenny. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. He was crossing the road and was hit by one of the competing cars. The scene was described as horrific by witnesses. The road was closed and did not re-open for some time. Organisors cancelled the rally for the rest of the day and later announced that the 2008 event would be abandoned as a mark of respect Eugene Donnelly was announced as winner as he led the rally at the time of the accident.
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. It is one of Ireland's oldest annual rally competitions and is a top event in the Irish Rallying calendar. It has a reputation for being one of the country's most challenging rallies. The event begins and concludes in Letterkenny
Letterkenny
Letterkenny , with a population of 17,568, is the largest town in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in Ireland. The town is located on the River Swilly...
.
History
The event began in 1972 with Cahal Curley the first winner. The event was postponed for the two consecutive years of 2001 and 2002 due to the Foot-and-mouth diseaseFoot-and-mouth disease
Foot-and-mouth disease or hoof-and-mouth disease is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids...
and a serious accident. The rally was abandoned in 2008 after a spectrator was hit by a driver.
In 2006 Toni Kelly became the youngest ever female participant in the Donegal International Rally. Kelly was 17 at the time of the event and a fifth-year student at Loreto Convent
Loreto Convent
Loreto Convent is an all-girls secondary school located in Letterkenny, County Donegal, Ireland. It is located beside the Cathedral of St. Eunan and St Columba. It is one of nineteen Loreto Secondary Schools in Ireland.- History :...
in Letterkenny.
The rally attracts approximately 50,000 spectators each year. The event is estimated to be worth over €20 million to the Donegal economy each year. The event was previously sponsored by Shell
Shell Oil Company
Shell Oil Company is the United States-based subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, a multinational oil company of Anglo Dutch origins, which is amongst the largest oil companies in the world. Approximately 22,000 Shell employees are based in the U.S. The head office in the U.S. is in Houston, Texas...
. The current sponsors of the Donegal International Rally are Topaz Energy
Topaz Energy
Topaz is an Irish petroleum retail chain, operating all over Ireland. The legal entity was formed in 2005 and previously traded under the Statoil and Shell brands, until 2008 when the "Topaz" brand replaced both in Ireland, partly due to the Corrib gas controversy. It is also the largest supplier...
and The Mount Errigal Hotel.
2002 event
At the 2002 event two marshals were killed. The two 22-year-old men, one from MovilleMoville
Moville is a town and coastal resort on the Inishowen Peninsula of County Donegal, close to the northern tip of Ireland.-Location:...
, the other from Crossmaglen
Crossmaglen
Crossmaglen or Crosmaglen is a village and townland in south County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 1,459 people in the 2001 Census and is the largest village in south Armagh...
, died when a car crashed into spectators at around 2.00pm. Three men were also injured. The remaining stages of the event were cancelled after the serious accident on Stage Two. Andrew Nesbitt was announced as winner as he led the rally at the time of the accident.
This led to the Motorsport Commission to inspect safety at all future events.
2008 event
At the 2008 event an 18-year-old spectator died after being hit by a car driven by WelshWales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
driver Elfyn Evans
Elfyn Evans
-Biography:The son of former WRC driver Gwyndaf Evans, he is sponsored by the family Ford motor dealership in Dolgellau, first established by his great-grandfather in Dinas Mawddwy, renamed to Gwyndaf Evans Motors in 1983....
, at 3.30pm. The accident happened at Ballyare, about four miles from Letterkenny. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. He was crossing the road and was hit by one of the competing cars. The scene was described as horrific by witnesses. The road was closed and did not re-open for some time. Organisors cancelled the rally for the rest of the day and later announced that the 2008 event would be abandoned as a mark of respect Eugene Donnelly was announced as winner as he led the rally at the time of the accident.
2010 event
On Saturday Afternoon 19 June 2010, a co-driver died after the car he was in crashed off of a cliff on the Knockalla stage, south of Portsalon, of the event shortly after 3pm. The Car, a white Citreon C2, fell 400 to 500 ft down the side of the hill but came to a stop in the trees at the edge of a cliff. Thomas Maguire, Aged 26, from Longwood, County Meath was killed and his driver, Shane Buckley, critically injured.The road was closed until the next day, where the Rally officials placed a wreath on the side of the road, where he went off. A group on Facbook was created as a sign of respect. As a result, the final stage of the rally was cancelled. This was the first time in the rally's history that a competitor was killed during the rally.Winners
| Year | Winner | Car | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 |  Cahal Curley |
BMW 2002 | |
| 1973 | Cahal Curley |
Porsche Carrera | |
| 1974 | Cahal Curley |
Porsche Carrera | |
| 1975 |  Achim WarmboldAchim Warmbold Achim Warmbold is a German former rally driver. He won the West German Rally Championship in 1971 and 1980, and scored two outright victories during the inaugural World Rally Championship season in 1973 at the Rally of Poland and Austrian Alpine Rally events.Aside from his first WRC race, his... |
BMW BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands... |
|
| 1976 | Brian Nelson |
Porsche Carrera | |
| 1977 | Billy Coleman |
Lancia Stratos Lancia Stratos The Lancia Stratos HF, widely and more simply known as Lancia Stratos, is a car made by Italian car manufacturer Lancia. The HF stands for High Fidelity... |
|
| 1978 |  Ari VatanenAri Vatanen Ari Pieti Uolevi Vatanen is a Finnish rally driver turned politician and Member of the European Parliament 1999–2009. Vatanen won the World Rally Championship drivers' title in 1981 and the Paris Dakar Rally four times.... |
Ford Escort | |
| 1979 | Brian Nelson |
Ford Escort | |
| 1980 |  Jimmy McRaeJimmy McRae Jimmy McRae is a Scottish rally driver. He is the father of World Rally Championship drivers Alister McRae, and the late 1995 World Rally Champion Colin McRae... |
Vauxhall Chevette Vauxhall Chevette The Chevette was a supermini model of car manufactured by Vauxhall in the UK from 1975 to 1984. It was Vauxhall's version of the family of small "T-Cars" from Vauxhall's parent General Motors ; the family included the Opel Kadett in Germany, the Isuzu Gemini in Japan, the Holden Gemini in... |
|
| 1981 | John Lyons |
Ford Escort | |
| 1982 | John Lyons |
Ford Escort | |
| 1983 | Vincent Bonner |
Ford Escort | |
| 1984 | Billy Coleman |
Opel Manta Opel Manta The Opel Manta was a rear-wheel-drive sports coupé motor vehicle built by Opel, from 1970 to 1988.-1970–75: Opel Manta A:The Manta A was released in September 1970, two months ahead of the then new Opel Ascona on which it was based... |
|
| 1985 | Billy Coleman |
Porsche 911 Porsche 911 The Porsche 911 is a luxury 2-door sports coupe made by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. It has a distinctive design, rear-engined and with independent rear suspension, an evolution of the swing axle on the Porsche 356. The engine was also air-cooled until the introduction of the Type 996 in 1998... |
|
| 1986 | Billy Coleman |
Austin Metro | |
| 1987 |  Bertie Fisher |
Opel Manta | |
| 1988 |  Mark LovellMark Lovell Mark Lovell was a British rally driver. He won the 1986 British Rally Championship in a Ford RS200 Group B, the 1987 and 1988 Irish Tarmac Rally Championship, the 1988 International Dutch Rally Drivers' Championship and the 2001 SCCA ProRally Drivers' Championship in the United States... |
Ford Sierra Ford Sierra The Ford Sierra is a large family car that was built by Ford Europe from 1982 until 1993. It was designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément. The code used during development was "Project Toni".... |
|
| 1989 | David Llewellin David Llewellin David Llewellin is a Welsh rally driver. He was highly successful in the British Rally Championship, winning the title twice in 1989 and 1990, both times at the wheel of a Toyota Celica GT-Four... |
Toyota Celica Toyota Celica The Toyota Celica name has been applied to a series of coupes made by the Japanese company Toyota. The name is ultimately derived from the Latin word coelica meaning "heavenly" or "celestial".... |
|
| 1990 | Austin McHale |
BMW M3 BMW M3 The BMW M3 is a high-performance version of the BMW 3 Series, developed by BMW's in-house motorsport division, BMW M. M3 models have been derived from the E30, E36, E46 and E90/E92/E93 3-series, and sold with coupé, sedan and convertible body styles... |
|
| 1991 | James Cullen |
Ford Sierra | |
| 1992 | Bertie Fisher |
Subaru Legacy Subaru Legacy The Subaru Legacy is a mid-size car built by the Japanese company Fuji Heavy Industries, and manufactured by its division Subaru since 1989, and is available as a sedan or wagon. Part of the original design goals for the Legacy model was to provide Subaru a vehicle in which they could compete in... |
|
| 1993 | Bertie Fisher |
Subaru Legacy | |
| 1994 | Stephen Finlay |
Ford Escort | |
| 1995 | Bertie Fisher |
Subaru Legacy | |
| 1996 | Andrew Nesbitt Andrew Nesbitt Andrew Nesbitt is a rally driver and businessman from Newtownhamilton, Co. Armagh, Northern Ireland. He is currently co-driven by James O'Brien from Co. Cork. He is best known for driving the Subaru Impreza but first made his name driving a Toyota Celica on the 1996 Donegal International Rally... |
Toyota Celica | |
| 1997 | Austin McHale |
Toyota Celica | |
| 1998 | Andrew Nesbitt |
Toyota Celica | |
| 1999 | Republic of Ireland James Cullen |
Subaru Impreza Subaru Impreza Introduced in November 1993, the Impreza was offered in either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive versions and as a four-door sedan/saloon or five-door station wagon/estate. According to a Motor Trend article written March 1992 on page 26, the name of Subaru's new compact was, initially, to be... |
|
| 2000 | Andrew Nesbitt |
Subaru Impreza WRC | |
| 2001 | Event did not run (Foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease or hoof-and-mouth disease is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids... ) |
- | http://www.rte.ie/sport/2001/0328/donegalrally.html |
| 2002 | Event Cancelled Andrew Nesbitt |
Subaru Impreza WRC | http://www.rte.ie/sport/2002/0621/rally.html |
| 2003 | Andrew Nesbitt |
Subaru Impreza WRC | |
| 2004 | Eugene Donnelly Eugene Donnelly Eugene Donnelly is a rally driver from County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, who races in the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship.-Career:... |
Toyota Corolla WRC | http://www.rte.ie/sport/motorsport/2004/0621/donegalrally.html |
| 2005 | Eugene Donnelly | Toyota Corolla WRC | http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/4107668.stm |
| 2006 | Andrew Nesbitt |
Mitsubishi Lancer WRC Mitsubishi Lancer WRC The Mitsubishi Lancer WRC is a World Rally Car built by Ralliart, Mitsubishi Motors' motorsport division, to compete in the World Rally Championship... |
http://www.rte.ie/sport/2006/0618/donegalrally.html http://www.breakingnews.ie/archives/2006/0618/sport/cwgbmhsnkfau/ |
| 2007 |  Sebastian Loeb |
Citroën C4 WRC Citroën C4 WRC The Citroën C4 WRC is a World Rally Car built for the Citroën World Rally Team by Citroën Racing to compete in the World Rally Championship. It is based upon the Citroën C4 road car and replaced the Citroën Xsara WRC... |
http://www.rte.ie/sport/motorsport/2007/0617/donegal.html http://rally.connect.ie/results.php?rally=DL07 |
| 2008 | Event Cancelled Eugene Donnelly | - | http://www.highlandradio.com/news.php?articleid=000002245 |
| 2009 | Gareth McHale | Ford Focus | http://www.donegaldemocrat.ie/donegalsport/McHale-follows-familiar-footprints-to.5389423.jp |
| 2010 | Gareth McHale | Ford Focus | http://results.shannonsportsit.ie/results.php?rally=DL10 |
| 2011 | Tim McNulty | Subaru WRC | http://results.shannonsportsit.ie/results.php?rally=DL11 |
External links
- Official Site
- Donegal International Rally on Bebo
- Donegal International Rally Past Winners
- James McDaid Crash Video - 1986
- Donegal International Rally 2008 preview
- Donegal International Rally 2007
- Donegal International Rally Images on Letterkenny Guide
- Donegal International Rally Images on Flickr
- Donegal International Rally Images on Rally Retro