Borneo Safari flags off 28th edition
KOTA KINABALU: The much-anticipated Borneo Safari International OffRoad Challenge finally set off for an eight-day gruelling, yet exciting, challenge traversing the rugged terrains of Sabah yesterday.
Entering its 28th edition this year, the October 28 to November 4 event will see 399 vehicles involving 1,030 off-road enthusiasts taking part.
The participants hail from 12 countries, including Russia who are making their debut. The rest are from the Philippines, Ireland, France, Japan, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Vietnam and China.
Out of the total number of participants, 900 of them were foreign entries.
Speaking after the flagoff ceremony at the Sabah Tourism Board building here, Deputy Chief Minister cum Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew said the Borneo Safari was wellsuited to Sabah’s jungle and she believed it was one of the reasons why the annual event had attracted many participants each year.
She went on to describe the participants as ambassadors for Sabah and that the Borneo Safari complemented the ministry’s efforts to promote the state as a premier adventure tourist destination.
“There has been an increase in the number of foreign participants each year and I understand that there are many foreign journalists, travel and auto magazine writers covering the event too this year.
“This is indeed good news for the Sabah tourism industry that augurs well and gives us wider recognition and helps promote this destination to those who love nature and adventure, especially for extreme offroad enthusiasts,” she said.
For the record, there are two main categories in the Borneo Safari, namely the Special Stages of competition and Expedition experiences for tag-ons.
The off-road adventure, which has been held annually since 1991, covers approximately 1,000km of extreme driving conditions through the most challenging terrains in Sabah.
The event is organised by the Sabah Four Wheel Drive Association with the STB and mainly supported by its Diamond Sponsor Isuzu and Platinum Sponsor UMW Grantt International Sdn Bhd as the main vehicle oil lubricant.