Excitement is palatable as participants start flooding into South Africa from across Africa for the big showdown at the first African Karting Cup on Saturday 17 February at the Zwartkops Kart Circuit in Centurion.
40 of the finest participants from across Africa including Angola, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa and Zimbabwe will compete in this exciting event.
Rok Cup South Africa, Cindy Van Der Laan, says in the OK-J class South Africa will have the strongest presence with eight young karters all vying for top position followed by Madagascar and Mozambique. In the OK-N class Mozambique will have the strongest presence with six participants followed by South Africa with four, Madagascar with three, Kenya and Botswana each with two entrants and single entries from Namibia, Nigeria and Zimbabwe.
Van Der Laan says many of these young karters, while champions in their own country, have never had the opportunity to race outside their country and compete with different drivers from different countries. “The one thing they all have in common though is they have been karting from a very young age, many have family involved in the sport and they all share a love and passion for karting and an unwavering dedication and competitive spirit for karting excellence.”
FIA Deputy President for Sport, Robert Reid says a competition like this, supported by both FIA and Motorsport South Africa, is significant as it represents a major opportunity for these young drivers to expand their network, gain valuable racing experience alongside new competitors and really fine tune their skills. It is also a great honour for them to be representing their country in an international competition,” he says.
Van Der Laan says this inaugural competition is the perfect opportunity for South Africans with young aspirant karters to come out to Zwartkops Kart Circuit in Centurion and join in the fun and give their youngsters a taste of exactly what is involved.
It is also for a great cause. Supporters will not only have the opportunity to see 40 of the finest participants from all over Africa battling it out, but will also be able to lend support to the Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA). The CANSA team will be out in full force hosting a CANSA Shavathon at the event. The theme this year is ‘Be Colourfully Kind’. It’s our 22nd year launching CANSA Shavathon and what better way to celebrate than for the karting community to focus on kindness,” says Leillani Geduld, National Manager Corporate Relations and Sporting Events at CANSA.
This is a logical tie up for our karting community says Van Der Laan with so many of these young participants spending hours out in the sun practicing each week. So a big shout out to everyone to make their way to Zwartkops on Saturday. Entre is free and gates open at 07:00. The official opening ceremony is at 09:30. “We are committed to growing the sport, fostering new talent, and creating opportunities for more people to become involved. In particular, we are passionate about getting more females involved in motorsport so we hope to see as many young ladies there as possible,” concludes van der Laan.
For those karting lovers that can’t make it to the track on Saturday the event will be live streamed
