Veteran rally driver Kenjiro Shinozuka, the first Japanese to win the Paris-Dakar Rally in 1997, will take part in the Africa Eco Race, his first challenge in 12 years, in an off-road race in the Sahara.
Shinozuka, 69, who turns 70 in November, is enthusiastic about the upcoming race, saying, "I'm an old 70-year-old man, but I'd like to tell my generation that 'it's not the end for us yet.'"
The Africa Eco Race started after the Paris-Dakar Rally moved its venue in 2009 to South America due to security concerns. About 100 rally cars participate in the annual motorsport event.
The competition starts in Monaco on Dec. 31, with a full-scale race beginning in Morocco on Jan. 2. The race ends in Dakar, the capital of Senegal, on Jan. 14, and includes racing in Mauritania.
During the race, contestants contribute to the local economy by purchasing food in the local areas around base camps. The race also aims to highlight the safety of the cities they pass through.
"The number of tourists will increase if they realize those areas are safe," Shinozuka said. "I can return the favor to Africa if towns there are revitalized and areas becoming deserts is stopped."
In 2002, Shinozuka offered funds to build an elementary school in Dakar. During the upcoming race, he plans to visit the school to present stationery to children. He is asking an elementary school in Hokuto, Yamanashi Prefecture, where he lives, for cooperation in donating stationery.
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