Tuesday evening, two days before the first day of the race, the prefect of Pas-de-Calais signed the decree authorizing the maintenance of the 61st edition of the Rallye du Touquet.
The pilots can therefore set off on Thursday.
For the public, it is another story, the authorities having conditioned their authorization to the application of "strict sanitary measures".
Instead of March, then April, the 61st Touquet rally will take place at the end of May, an event which counts for the French Rally Championship.
The race, which usually attracts a lot of people, will however have to reduce the number of spectators to the bare minimum due to the coronavirus epidemic.
Competitors' car parks and assistance parks will be closed to the public, "to avoid regrouping", specifies the prefecture of the department.
Specials behind closed doors and the rest of the race in small groups
And those who intended to fall back on the “special” stages will be disappointed, these being also closed to the public.
And there will be no question of trying to cheat, the organization of the event will indeed deploy no less than 160 race marshals as well as security guards to enforce the instructions.
For the remainder of the race, those who will not be discouraged can attend, making sure, however, not to generate gatherings of more than ten people liable to a fine of 135 euros.
The police will also ensure that such gatherings do not take place on private land.
They can, in this case, open "an investigation for endangering the life of others".
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