DOHA — Competitors from 27 countries and virtually every region on the planet were flagged away from the ceremonial start of the 2013 Sealine Cross-Country Rally by Nasser Khalifa Al-Attiyah, President of the Qatar Motor & Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) and president of the FIA Cross-Country Commission, on the Corniche here Monday afternoon. Four days of grueling desert motor sport action awaits 50 drivers and co-drivers, 13 motorcyclists and seven quad riders before the survivors reach the finish podium at Sealine, south of Doha, Friday afternoon. Top seeds in the car and motorcycle categories are Qatar's Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah (Buggy) and Spain's Marc Coma (KTM), although riders crossed the start podium in reverse order with the UAE's Mohammed Al-Shamsi leading the motorcycles and quads from the start Monday. Several of the leading drivers and riders joined Nasser Khalifa Al-Attiyah at the official pre-event press conference at the Losail International Circuit Monday. Other competitors from as far as Europe, Kazakhstan, Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela, Peru, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and the USA finalized their preparations for the start of the action Tuesday morning, while scrutineering of the remaining cars was completed at the Losail international circuit earlier in the day. Spaniard Marc Coma was forced to miss the Dakar Rally through injury, but the KTM rider was in confident and upbeat mood at the pre-event media gathering at Losail. Frenchman Jean-Louis Schlesser finished fourth in last year's inaugural Sealine event and arrives at the start this year with a superb opportunity to improve his campaign to win this year's FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies. Local rider Adel Hussein Abdullah was the third classified quad finisher last year and lines up against six other rivals on this occasion, including the Polish defending champion Rafal Sonik and Qatari Mohammed Abu Issa. The UAE's Obaid Al-Kitbe led until the final stage last year and returns to exact revenge on his Polish rival. The opening timed test features a series of sand dunes at the start and then runs through an area near a series of small hills before the terrain gives way to faster tracks. Competitors will again tackle a series of tricky sand dunes en route to the finish. — SG
