Jeddah governor to inaugurate 2020 Dakar Rally

A rider checks equipment ahead of the Dakar Rally on Jan.2, 2020. (Reuters)

(Supplied)

Riders check their motorbikes ahead of the Dakar Rally on Jan.2, 2020. (Reuters)

• The race will start in Jeddah and end in Qiddiya
• The total distance of the race will exceed 7,500 km in the country’s vast desert

JEDDAH: Jeddah Gov. Prince Mishaal bin Majed bin Abdul Aziz will inaugurate the 2020 Dakar Rally on Saturday, in the presence of Prince Abdul Aziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, chairman of the General Sports Authority.
The Kingdom will host the 2020 Dakar Rally — one of the world’s most difficult desert rallies — held for the first time in Asia after a 30-year domination by Africa and South America.
The race will start in Jeddah, head north through the Red Sea Project and NEOM, and move toward Hail on the road leading to Riyadh. 
The motorists will then continue west toward the middle of the Kingdom’s desert, before going back and heading east to Al-Ahsa. Then, they will enter the Empty Quarter right before the finish line in Qiddiya, a total distance exceeding 7,500 km in the country’s vast desert.