International Swedish Rally
| Rally Sweden | |
|---|---|
Sébastien Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia driving a Volkswagen Polo R WRC at the 62nd Rally Sweden.
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| Status | active |
| Genre | motorsporting event |
| Date(s) | February |
| Frequency | annual |
| Location(s) | Värmland |
| Country | Sweden |
| Inaugurated | 1950 |
The Rally Sweden (Swedish: Svenska rallyt), formerly the International Swedish Rally, and later the Uddeholm Swedish Rally, is an automobile rally competition held in Värmland, Sweden in early February. First held in 1950, when it was called the Rally to the Midnight Sun (Which at this time was a summer rally) with start and finish at separate locations, seventeen years later both start and finish became located in Karlstad. The main service park is located in the town of Torsby, which is actually much closer to the special stages than Karlstad. The competition is spread out over three days with the start of the first part on Friday morning and the finish on Sunday afternoon.
In 1973 the rally was introduced to the World Rally Championship and started to get international attention; the Swedish Rally has been also traditionally the only rally held on snow. Like Rally Finland, this rally is known to be very difficult for non-Nordic drivers. The first winning driver of the Swedish Rally that wasn't from Sweden or Finland was Frenchman Sébastien Loeb in 2004, Frenchman Sébastien Ogier was the second non-Nordic winner with wins in 2013, 2015 and 2016. Spaniard Carlos Sainz finished second four times and third two times.
The rally has been cancelled twice; in 1974 due to the oil crisis and in 1990 because of the mild weather. The rally was also not held in 2009 due to the WRC's round rotation system. Weather continues to be a concern, as rising global temperatures reduce the likelihood of appropriately snowy conditions every year. The 2005 event was one of the warmest ever, turning many stages into mud and destroying the special studded snow tires used by the teams.
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