History made as Branch finishes second at the Dakar Rally
Friday, January 19, 2024 | 3710 Views |
Ross Branch finishes in second position
He has been in the Persian Gulf deserts since January 5 for the Dakar Rally which is also the first round of the 2024 World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC)
Branch finished eighth on the final stage to clinch second position overall, a first for any Motswana rider. He also became the best performing African biker at the race. The Kalahari Ferrari was unlucky not to clinch his first ever Dakar Rally title as he finished just 10 minutes and 53 seconds behind eventual winner, Ricky Brabec of USA while Adrien van Beveren came third. It was pleasant display by Branch on the bike over the past two weeks as he equaled his Dakar Rally stage wins with two in this year's edition as he took his Dakar Rally career stage wins to five, the most by a local rider. This is his best ever finish at the race on his sixth appearance. Branch finished 13th on his debut in 2019 and walked away with the Best Rookie award.
It highlights the need to protect rights such as access to clean water, education, healthcare and freedom of expression.President Duma Boko, rightly honours past interventions from securing a dignified burial for Gaoberekwe Pitseng in the CKGR to promoting linguistic inclusion. Yet, they also expose a critical truth, that a nation cannot sustainably protect its people through ad hoc acts of compassion alone.It is time for both government and the...