Government confirms that 2010 Dakar Rally will pass through Chile

SANTIAGO.- The Minister of Government Affairs, Francisco Vidal, confirmed today that Chile and Argentina will once again host the Dakar Rally in 2010.

"In the next few hours, the French organization that coordinated the 2009 Dakar will announce to the Chilean and Argentine people that they have made the decision to hold the 2010 competition in Chile again", Vidal stated, while stressing the professional organization displayed during the event's passage through the country this year.

Noticeably excited about the benefits that being the location of one of the most important events in the automobile world can bring to Chile, Vidal asserted that "there will be more days here and we will go further north", while adding that it is "good for the country to be exposed to hundreds of millions of people in the world who, through a sporting event, can become familiar with this land in the furthest corner of the world".

Among the reasons why Chile will again host the event, Vidal explained that the Amaury Sports Organization (ASO) had positively evaluated the nation's organization, citing "excellent support from public services, especially from the Air Force and National Police Force".