Historic win for Loeb and Citroën


In Sweden today, at the end of  the  53rd  edition  of  the  Swedish  Rally,
Sebastien Loeb, Daniel Elena and the Xsara WRC sealed an  important  chapter
in the history of rallying. Winning an event  that  had,  for  over  half  a
century, been the  exclusive  preserve  of  Nordic  drivers,  Sebastien  and
Daniel put in a truly amazing  performance.  Claiming  fifth  place,  Carlos
Sainz and Marc  Marti  transformed  this  victory  into  an  excellent  team
operation, and have allowed Citroën to take the lead in  the  Manufacturers'
Championship.


Before the start, Sebastien had said : "I am very confident as far  as  the
potential of the car is concerned, and I am impatient to evaluate our  level
of performance compared to that of  our  rivals."  The  Citroën  driver  had
added :  "I hope to be able to  fight  in  the  leading  group.  If  I  can,
anything is possible." In the very precarious conditions  during  the  first
leg, Seb, who was starting first on the road, was quickly reassured. With  a
competitive Xsara, and no  fresh  snow  to  slow  him  down,  he  was  in  a
promising  second  place  by  Friday  evening.  With  the  pressure  growing
throughout the second leg, Seb's fastest time during SS9 put him out of  the
reach of Marcus Gronholm and  closer  to  the  leader,  Markko  Martin.  His
excellent balance and his ability to avoid making  mistakes  did  the  rest.
Leading after SS11, the French driver strengthened  his  position  with  two
fastest stage times. His final task was to  control  the  rally  during  the
third leg, which he managed with his usual composure. "I  have  now  claimed
my first non-tarmac victory, something I was very keen to do, I have  become
the first non-Nordic driver to win the Swedish Rally, I  have  increased  my
lead in the Drivers Championship, and Citroën has  taken  the  lead  in  the
Manufacturer's. It's hard to dream of a better result."


Carlos Sainz loves the Swedish Rally. But is the feeling mutual?  Finishing
second in the rally for four consecutive years, between 1996 and  1999,  the
Madrid - based driver dreamt of climbing up  to  the  highest  step  of  the
podium, and his fastest time in SS2 kept the dream alive.  Whilst  lying  in
third place, SS8 and SS9 removed  all  hopes  of  a  win.  On  two  separate
occasions, the Xsara's nose hit the snow banks, blocking the air intake  and
causing overheating engine. Living up to his reputation as  a  fighter,  the
Spaniard managed to climb back up the field, and he was fighting for  fourth
place when an overheating engine, probably consequent to  this  of  the  day
before on SS18, forced him to slow the  pace.  "That's  racing!  I  really
enjoyed my fight with young Janne Tuohino, and I have claimed a  few  useful
points. I would most particularly like  to  congratulate  Sebastien  on  his
amazing performance. Having been the first 'southerner' to  win  in  Finland
and in Great Britain, I know how  it  feels  to  break  a  stronghold.  This
evening, I think that we are just at the beginning of Seb's big year!"


At the service park, before returning to Karlstad, Guy Frequelin had a  lump
in his throat : "I must admit that I am overcome, as  we  all  are,  by  the
magic, by the emotion of this fantastic moment. The team  gave  Sebastien  a
perfect Xsara, his talent converted their  work  into  an  immense  joy  for
Citroën. We are now in a fine position in both Championships. We  could  not
have hoped for better encouragement in order to prepare for the  next  event."

Michelin, Magneti-Marelli, Kinetic, OZ, AIS and Citroën Financement are  the
partners of the Citroën-Total team in the World Rally Championship.

-citroen-



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