The 7th edition of African rally-marathon AFRICA ECO RACE 2015 will be held from December 28th 2014 to January 11th 2015.
The rally-marathon Africa Eco Race 2015 can be rightly considered transcontinental, as its route connects Europe and Africa. The most exciting events of the year will be in Africa, as according to the organizers the true spirit of adventure, hard struggle and mutual support live only there.
The AFRICA ECO RACE 2015 will start from Saint Cyprien, seaside resort in the Eastern Pyrenees, and Saint Cyprien will once more welcome the administrative checks and scrutineering. After crossing the Mediterranean Sea by boat from Europe to Morocco (Nador), the first stage will be a sort of warm up stage for the participants, before crossing Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal and a beautiful adventure as well as sports battles on the track.
The African Rally offers 12 stages and well deserved rest day on the Atlantic coast in Dakhla, Morocco. It will be a route along a 6000km race out of which 3500km are selective sectors in 2015.
The rally is marked by all kind of different landscapes: rocky, fast and bumpy tracks with a hilly landscape in Morocco, insidious Sahara with soft sand and dunes in Mauritania and sinuous green savannas in Senegal. That’s what the competitors will have to deal with. All this will ensure maximum stress to all the participants of the race, both professionals and amateurs.
Key dates:
November 15th, 2014 Entries closed
December 28th, 2014 Administrative and Technical checks
December 30th, 2014 1st stage, Morocco
January 4th, 2015 Rest day (Dakhla, Morocco)
January 11th, 2015 Finish of the rally (Lac Rose, Dakar, Senegal)
«KAMAZ-master»: in the rhythm of Africa!
Team
2 race trucks of the team will participate on the Africa Eco Race 2015.
CREWS
1st crew: A.Shibalov – R.Amatych – A.Khisamiev
2nd crew: S.Kupriyanov – A.Kupriyanov- A.Tanin
Vehicle
The team continues to use for participation in various competitions different modifications of well proven truck KAMAZ-4326. Due to the new regulations which limit the engine volume, all trucks on the Dakar 2015 will be equipped with Liebherr engine, but two trucks on Africa Eco Race 2015 will be equipped with trusty Yaroslav engine, TMZ-7Э846. Moreover one of these trucks will use a mixture of methane and diesel in the proportion of 30 to 70 percent. Gaz-engine KAMAZ has already been tested on Russian rallies "Zoloto Kagana" and "Velikaya Step". And in December, this truck and a crew with a pilot S.Kupriyanov, navigator A.Kupriyanov and mechanic A.Tanin will be putted to another tough test – the rally Africa Eco Race.
Gaz-engine race truck KAMAZ is a joint project of the KAMAZ-master Team, VTB Bank and Gazprom JSC. The goal is to demonstrate the possibilities of natural gas as an engine fuel.
KAMAZ-4326
KAMAZ-4326(Gaz + Diesel)
KAMAZ-master Team on the Africa Eco Race 2015
Crew: А.Shibalov – R.Amatych – A.Khisamiev
Anton Shibalov - pilot
World-class athlete
At the team since 2008
Date/place of birth: April 25, 1984/ Pskovskaya obl.
Hobby: motor racing
Family status: married
Sports achievements:
2010 Khazarskie Stepi, mechanic, A.Mardeev’s crew, 4th place
2010 SILK WAY RALLY Dakar Series, mechanic, A. Mardeev’s crew, 7th place
2011 Zoloto Kagana, mechanic, A.Mardeev’s crew, 2nd place
2011 Simbirsky tract, mechanic, A.Mardeev’s crew, 1st place
2011 SILK WAY RALLY Dakar Series, pilot, 15th place.
2012 Simbirsky tract, pilot, 3rd place
2012 Silk Way Rally, pilot, 3rd place
2012 Zoloto Kagana, pilot, 6th place
2013 Africa Race, pilot, 1st place
2013 Silk Way Rally, pilot, 2nd place
2013 Zoloto Kagana, pilot, 3rd place
2014 Dakar, pilot, 5th place
2014 Velikaya step, pilot, 1st place
Honours and awards:
2013 - Letter of acknowledgment from the President of the Republic of Tatarstan
Since his early childhood Anton was keen on technics. At the age of 8 he went to Saint-Petersburg with his father and for the first time Anton got to see the Russian Carting Championship. From that moment he is absorbed in competitions, Anton Shibalov is in motorsport from the age of 12. The biggest achievement of his is the victory on the Cup of Russia, he is repeated champion of the Republic of Tatarstan from his childhood.
Anton joined KAMAZ-master Team in 2007. For the first time he went to Dakar as a mechanic in 2011. His debut as a mechanic of the race truck will be at the famous rally-marathon Dakar 2012. Anton makes progress and participates as a pilot on the Silk Way Rally 2011. His crew took there the 15th place, but in 2012 he became the bronze medalist of the race!
In 2013, Anton takes part in the rally Africa Race (the crew of A.Shibalov - D.Sotnikov - E.Yakovlev).
He won 1st place in the truck standings and 2nd in the overall! Only the legendary "Desert Fox" Jean-Louis Schlesser was ahead, the best riders of the planet consider an honor to compete with him. Tomas Tomecek on Tatra took the 3rd place in overall. He is a three-time medalist of the Dakar, 4 time winner of the Africa Race. There were 10 challenging stages in Africa, more than 3,000 kilometers of special stages, and a very difficult route. Africa didn’t indulge anyone by changing landscapes, conditions, confusing reference points. Narrow rocky canyons, cliffs near the dilapidated roads, Moroccan stones sharp as knives, deceptive sands, hot limitless expanse and wandering dunes of Mauritania, green woodlands and Lac Rose in Senegal. The young crew is not just doing basic tasks - improving sports skills, not just demonstrated generosity and courage by coming to the aid to Elisabete Jacinto, one of the main opponents, showing once again that they learn in the KAMAZ-master Team to win on the route, but not in backroom games, but got an outstanding result.
Robert Amatych – co-pilot
Master of Sports.
At the team since 2006
Date/place of birth: September 7, 1970 / Agryz, Tatarstan
Hobby: hockey
Family status: married, 2 children
Sports achievements:
2007 Khazarskie Stepi, mechanic, E.Nikolaev’s crew, 2nd place
2008 Russian Championship «Tikhiy Don», mechanic, A.Karginov’s crew, 2nd place
2011 Zoloto Kagana, co-pilot, A.Mardeev’s crew, 2nd place
2012 Simbirsky tract rally, co-pilot, A.Shibalov’s crew, 3rd place
2012 Silk Way Rally, co-pilot, A.Shibalov’s crew, 3rd place
2012 Zoloto Kagana, co-pilot, A.Shibalov’s crew, 6th place
2013 Zoloto Kagana, co-pilot, A.Shibalov’s crew, 3rd place
2013 Silk Way Rally, co-pilot, A.Shibalov’s crew, 2nd place
2014 Velikaya Step, co-pilot, A.Shibalov’s crew, 1st place
2014 Dakar, co-pilot, A.Shibalov’s crew, 5th place
Honours and awards:
2008 - Letter of acknowledgment from KAMAZ JSC
A man who will not let you down, he is one hundred percent team player. There is roughly his line in the team. He is a trustworthy person. This is no accident that he loves team sport - hockey and basketball. Add to that a rich life experience; he has learned to be electrician, driver, and assistant driver of the locomotive, head of the railway station. Not everyone can boast of such employment history! He always loved technics. "I've always been fascinated by the sound of the engine!" - says Robert. First there were the motorcycles in childhood, then the sound of a powerful diesel locomotive. Among other things, Robert is interested in painting. "On a word «Africa», majestic desert landscapes, dissolving in the sultry haze appear before the eyes. I already feel terrible breath of Sahara and I can’t wait to plunge into the atmosphere of the event. I hope that I will have to look not only in the road-book, but also sometimes to look around and who knows, maybe even I will be able to sketch something after the race".
Almaz Khisamiev – mechanic
At the team since 2011
Date/place of birth: March 16, 1984 / B.Karlanga, Buinskiy region, Tatarstan
Hobby: karting
Family status: married, one child
Sports achievements:
2012 Silk Way Rally, mechanic, I.Mardeev’s crew, 9th place
2013 Zoloto Kagana, mechanic, A.Shibalov’s crew, 3rd place
2013 Silk Way Rally, mechanic, A.Shibalov’s crew, 2nd place
2014 Dakar, mechanic, A.Shibalov’s crew, 5th place
2014 Velikaya step, mechanic, A.Shibalov’s crew, 1st place
Honours and awards:
2013 - Letter of acknowledgment from the President of the Republic of Tatarstan
Almaz Khisamiev came to motorsport very recently. As a boy, walking after school with his friends he got over a fence of the city go-cart track and entered in unknown and fascinating world of motors and speed. He acquainted with the coach and the guys-sportsmen. He became friends with another future member of the KAMAZ-master Team Anton Shibalov and became a mechanic of his cart. After school, Almaz chose technical specialty and continued his studies at the college. Almaz came to the team not long ago. Capable and keen guy was noticed by Ilgizar Mardeev who took him in his crew as a mechanic. Now Almaz has the opportunity to meet sportsmen- idols of his childhood during the Dakar and the Silk Way Rally.
Crew: S.Kupriyanov – A.Kupriyanov – A.Tanin
Sergey Kupriyanov - pilot
At the team since 2012
Date/place of birth: October 17, 1974 / Vyazma
Hobby: cookery
Family status: married, 4 children
Sports achievements:
2012 Silk Way Rally, pilot, 12th place
2013 Silk Way Rally, ″Green Ghallenge″ category, pilot, 8th place
2014 Zoloto Kagana, pilot, 4th place
2014 Velikaya Step, pilot, 2nd place
He is the only pilot, for which autosport is not a profession in our team.
As it was confessed by Sergey, he went to rally-raids by chance, he was interested in the road orientation and trophy, but he "fell ill" seriously and perhaps permanently. "When I consulted with my friends whether should I accept an offer to try my hand in driving KAMAZ at the Silk Way Rally – I got a straight answer: this chance falls not only once in a lifetime, but also one for 6 billion people ... Since then, every day I am convinced that it was an extraordinary stroke of luck to be in the fold of the "blue armada" - and I’m thankful for this opportunity ".
On the Africa Eco Race the crew of Sergey Kupriyanov (Alexander Kupriyanov, Anatoly Tanin) will participate on gas-engine KAMAZ 4326 (gas + diesel), and the crew will complete not only sports, but also marketing tasks. "Gas fuel is reliable and environmentally friendly" - the crew is going to conquer Africa under this motto.
Alexander Kupriyanov – co-pilot
At the team since 2012
Date/place of birth: October 27, 1978 / Vyazma
Hobby: underwater hunting
Family status: married, 2 children
Sports achievements:
2013 Silk Way Rally, ″Green Ghallenge″ category, co-pilot, S.Kupriyanov’s crew, 8th place
2014 Zoloto Kagana, co-pilot, S.Kupriyanov’s crew, 4th place
2014 Velikaya Step, co-pilot, S.Kupriyanov’s crew, 2nd place
It is unlikely that a few years ago, Alexander Kupriyanov could have imagined that his hobby (trophy and orienteering) soon turn to him in a serious and a big deal. "To be responsible for the navigation in the crew of world famous sports team is primarily a huge responsibility; it is a whole new level of challenge compared to what I did before in autosport. That's why I try to use every opportunity for development and training. Every competition is of great importance. Your own experience, all that you learn through your own mistakes - this is extremely useful. This is a unique school because you can always ask for advice from such masters as Vladimir Chagin, Sergey Savostin, Aydar Belyaev!"
Anatoly Tanin - mechanic
At the team since 2002
Master of Sports.
Date/place of birth: August 13, 1975 / Naberezhnye Chelny
Hobby: fishing
Family status: married, 3 children
Sports achievements:
2008 Desert Challenge, mechanic, V.Chagin’s crew, 1st place
2009 Silk Way Rally, mechanic, F.Kabirov’s crew, 1st place
2011 Silk Way Rally, mechanic, F.Kabirov’s crew, 2nd place
2014 Zoloto Kagana, mechanic, S.Kupriyanov’s crew, 4th place
2014 Velikaya step, mechanic, S.Kupriyanov’s crew, 2nd place
Honours and awards:
2008 - Letter of acknowledgment from Mayor of Naberezhnye Chelny
2013 - Letter of acknowledgment from KAMAZ JSC
During the Africa Eco Race the main spectators of Anatoly Tanin will undoubtedly be three his children and wife. Children forget everything when they see on TV or, for example, in magazine anything related to the KAMAZ-master. During the competitions he is usually on the wheel of the heavy assistance truck, but this time his truck is sent to the rally Dakar in South America, and Anatoly Tanin is entrusted to complete important tasks on the race KAMAZ in Africa. Anatoly is the most experienced crew member on gas-engine KAMAZ 4326 registered on the African race, as such rallies as Desert Challenge and the Silk Way Rally are behind him.
