De Paddock - Het Einde van Chimay..... of toch niet?

Following much recent speculation, the sad news
has arrived that the famous Chimay road racing
circuit in Belgium will now be forcibly closed
to motorcar racing, after an illustrious 79 years.

The Chimay Grand Prix circuit has hosted many
spectacular events since Jules Buisseret came up
with the idea of creating the Grand Prix des
Frontieres in 1926. From that bold inception, the
original 11-kilometre Chimay road circuit went on
to forge a reputation as one of the most daunting
challenges in the international racing calendar.

After an 11th-hour circuit inspection by the RACB
(the Belgian governing body) -- just eight weeks
before their flagship 80th Anniversary event was
due to be staged (on 21-23 July) -- the organisers
of the Chimay Historycar Festival have found
themselves without a permit with which to run their
event under a National licence.

In an extraordinary meeting convened by the RACB
on Thursday 1 June, the RACB also dictated that the
organisers of the Chimay event may not even run
their event via the alternative route of a Provincial
licence. This draconian action by the RACB will
therefore prevent any form of car circuit racing from
taking place at this historic road-racing venue,
leaving Belgium with just Spa and Zolder to
accommodate the loss of this unique and evocative
meeting in the future.

Ironically, circuit permits have been granted for
Chimay's other main motorsport events, so the Toyo
"King of Europe" Dragster Show (23-25 June) remains
unaffected by the RACB's decision, as does Chimay's
impressive Classic Motorcycle Festival (14-16 July).

Top Hat's long-standing partnership with Chimay will
not cease. Top Hat has been called upon by the
Chimay organisers to help lobby support for the
re-instatement of this evocative circuit's track
licence, to safeguard the both the future of the
Chimay Historycar Festival and historic racing in this
region of Belgium.

We therefore ask all competitors to register their
support for this great road-racing event's dynamic
survival as a historic racing venue by emailing or
posting a message of support to:

Julius Thurgood
Top Hat Racing
Grove House
80 Clarendon Street
Leamington Spa
CV32 4PE
United Kingdom

Tel+Fax: +44 (0)1926 885835.
Email: julius@tophatracing.co.uk
Website: www.tophatracing.co.uk

Thank you all for your past and ongoing support of
Chimay.

Rest assured, your response WILL be heard!

Bron: Colin wilson