The Jänner Rallye, also known as the Internationale Jänner Rallye, is an international rallying event based in Freistadt in northern Austria. The event is the season opening round of the European Rally Championship, the Austrian Rally Championship and the Czech Rally Championship. Translated from German the name means January Rally. The mid-winter calendar position means the rally is frequently snow-bound with the surface a mix of ice and asphalt.

Franz Wittmann, Sr. at the 1984 event

History

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First run in 1969 as the Casino Rallye, it quickly became a feature of the Austrian championship and soon joined the European championship although only in the lower co-efficient category. Achim Warmbold became the first multiple winner of the event in 1973, but Franz Wittmann, Sr. came to dominate the rally. He won the rally nine times in a ten-year period from 1975 to 1984, including six straight wins in Audis as the 4WD era dawned.

The rally ended in 1986 because of environmental concerns. The rally returned in 2000 and in 2003 Wittman won the rally for a tenth time. In recent times honours have been shared between Austrian and Czech drivers, reflecting the dual national championship status the rally has acquired. Raimund Baumschlager, Václav Pech, Jr. and Jan Kopecký have claimed multiple victories.

In 2012, the rally rejoined the European Championship after having dropped out with the demise of the co-efficient system in 2004. The rally replaced the ELPA Rally in Greece which had been cancelled in 2011.

In 2016, the rally didn't take place since the Rallye Club Mühlviertel (responsible for the rally organization) was struggling with lack of candidates to assume the mangament board.[1] The rally restarted in 2018 as a round of the Austrian Rally Championship.

List of winners

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Sourced in part from:[2][3]

Year Winner Car
1969   Heinz Weiner Citroën DS 19
1970   Helmut Bein BMW 2002
1971   Rudolf Müller BMW 2002
1972   Achim Warmbold Opel Ascona
1973   Achim Warmbold Volkswagen 1302S
1974 not held
1975   Franz Wittmann, Sr. BMW 2002
1976   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Opel Kadett C
1977   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Opel Kadett C
1978   Beppo Sulc Volkswagen 1302S
1979   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Porsche Carrera
1980   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Audi 80 GTE
1981   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Audi Quattro
1982   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Audi Quattro
1983   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Audi Quattro A1
1984   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Audi Quattro A2
1985   Wilfried Wiedner Audi Quattro A2
1986   Georg Fischer Audi 80 Quattro
1987
-
1999
not held
2000   Felix Pailer Lancia Delta Integrale 16V
2001   Herwig Hüfinger Mazda 323 4WD
2002   Hermann Gassner Mitsubishi Carisma GT Evo VI
2003   Franz Wittmann, Sr. Toyota Corolla WRC
2004   Raimund Baumschlager Mitsubishi Carisma GT Evo V
2005   Václav Pech, Jr. Ford Focus RS WRC
2006   Raimund Baumschlager Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII
2007   Václav Pech, Jr. Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
2008   Václav Pech, Jr. Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
2009   Raimund Baumschlager Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
2010 not held
2011   Beppo Harrach Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
2012   Jan Kopecký Škoda Fabia S2000
2013   Jan Kopecký Škoda Fabia S2000
2014   Robert Kubica Ford Fiesta RRC
2015   Kajetan Kajetanowicz Ford Fiesta R5
2016
2017
not held
2018   Johannes Keferböck Ford Fiesta R5
2019   Julian Wagner Škoda Fabia R5

References

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  1. ^ "No Jännerrallye in 2016". 7 June 2015.
  2. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-02-11. Retrieved 2013-09-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ http://www.ewrc-results.com/events.php?id=36&t=Janner-Rallye
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