Zambia’s Singh crowned Africa Rally champion

TWENTY-YEAR-OLD Jassy Singh has won the 2013 African Rally Championship (ARC) title, becoming the youngest champion in the history of the championship.

Monday, November 11, 2013
Jassy Singh of Zambia at only 20 years of age, has become the youngest ever FIA African Rally Champion. Net photo.

TWENTY-YEAR-OLD Jassy Singh has won the 2013 African Rally Championship (ARC) title, becoming the youngest champion in the history of the championship. Singh, navigated by veteran navigator Dave Sihoka, finished the 461-kilometre Madagascar international rally over the weekend in sixth place in 3hrs:08:21 which was enough to help him win the African title, beating closest challenger in Jas Mangat of Uganda, who didn’t finish the race. Despite finishing sixth, Singh notched 25 points to end the circuit with 106 points.  And with Sunday’s victory, Zambia has now won the ARC titles – drivers and navigators – a combined 17 times.Mangat, who led the title race by two points going into the final round, finished second with 83 points, while Rwanda’s Giancarlo Davite came third with 58 points having wrapped up his campaign with victory in the Mt. Gorilla Rally in Rwanda in September.Singh followed in the footstep of his father, Muna, who won the ARC twice and his uncle, Satwant, who holds a record eight titles. The only Zambian champion outside the Singh family is Muhammed Essa, the 2012 champion. Mangat crashed out in the seventh stage after his car let him down on the penultimate day of the competition, denying him any chance to put his hands on the prestigious title for the first time ever.