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SA Government Endorses Event

As Minister of Transport, I welcome the arrival of truck racing in South Africa seeing it not only as a vehicle to boost the country's image internationally but also as a possible stimulus to help raise the level of awareness of the trucking industry among the general public of South Africa. As such, the Government of South Africa fully endorses this prestige and exciting event.

It is true to say that while the trucking industry in South Africa plays a vital and essential role in keeping the wheels of the economy turning, it seldom gets the recognition it deserves. It is an industry which has been taken for granted and I'm hoping that when the exciting world of truck racing hits our shores, the high profile nature of the events will serve to capture the attention of the public and thereby bring greater recognition to the role of trucking in southern Africa.

On a wider front, the positive spin-offs that will accrue as a result of these two events being televised to the rest of the world will hold immeasurable benefits for our country. Primarily, however, it will serve to show South Africa in a positive light as a country which can compete on an equal footing with the best of the European truck racing host countries. In this regard, I would like to compliment the underwriters of the event - Continental Tyre SA along with MAN Truck & Bus SA, DaimlerChrysler SA and Shell SA - on their commitment to the promotion of South Africa in the international arena. My hope is that this initial event will lead to the incorporation of South Africa as a host country onto the annual calendar of the international truck racing organisers.

On behalf of all the people of South Africa, I would like to extend a warm welcome to the European race teams and their crews, as well as to the large contingent of international journalists representing not only the European television and trucking media but also various financial journals in Europe. May your stay in our beautiful country be a pleasant and rewarding one.

And now to the race track: Gentlemen, start your engines!