Prince Michael of Kent Will Lead Tercentenary Rally

 

by Sergei Kudasov, Tatyana Nikolayeva / RIA Novosti

LONDON/YEKATETINBURG, May 19 -- A member of the British Royal Family, Prince Michael of Kent is to lead the St. Petersburg Tercentenary Rally, a vintage car race starting on May 20 in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg.

Prince Michael, who is known for his charitable work around the world and who patronizes a whole range of charities in Russia and beyond, is the main driving force behind the rally. His opinion is that organizing the race is an opportunity to forge close ties between the two countries and learn more about Russian culture and history.

The choice of Yekaterinburg as a starting point for the rally is not accidental. The city is historically significant to the country in that it is where the family of Russia's last monarch tragically died in 1918.

The rally will start on May 20 in Yekaterinburg and pass via Perm, Izhevsk, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Vladimir, Moscow, Tver and Novgorod, to finish on June 2 in St. Petersburg, where participants in the rally will attend the celebrations of the city's 300th anniversary. In 15 days, the vintage rally drivers will have traveled over 2,500 km.

The race will feature 1920s and 1930s Bentleys, a 1936 Vauxhall and a 1936 Cadillac. All of the 14 cars will be flown into Yekaterinburg from Britain by a heavy-freight Antonov plane. Drivers for the vintage cars will be coming from the United Kingdom, the United States, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium and France.

One important goal for the rally will be to promote the cities little known outside Russia, including from the viewpoint of tourism. Prince Michael hopes the race serves the cause of developing tourism and forging mutual investment links between the Russian regions the rally will pass through and the UK.

Fund raising for charitable programs Prince Michael patronizes in Russia is being planned during the rally.