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McRae backs youth on the ERC

Rally legend Jim McRae is one of many who has endorsed 21-year-old Ralfs Sirmacis as a worthy winner of the Colin McRae ERC Flat Out Trophy.

The Latvian became the youngest-ever overall winner of the Acropolis Rally on Sunday, mirroring Colin McRae's reputation of winning rallies and championships at an extremely young age. McRae's crowning glory was winning the 1995 world championship when he was only 27: a record that still stands today.

"Colin was definitely an early starter, and it's great to see the youngsters coming through in international rallying," said McRae's father, who is also involved in a programme to help rising young motorsport stars in his native Scotland. "To do what Ralfs has done on a rally that's as tough as the Acropolis is a fantastic achievement, so I'm very happy to see him pick up the McRae trophy."

Runner-up in the ERC Junior Championship last year, Sirmacis was contesting his first event in an R5 car, with only 60 kilometres of testing in it prior to the rally start.

Zdroj: fiaerc.com