Scandinavian Elcoteq MC Race to Roar into St. Petersburg on May 22

Competitors in the Elcoteq MC Race on the King's Road rally from Helsinki to St. Petersburg will arrive at Palace Square on the evening of May 22. This was announced yesterday at a press conference by Antti Piippo, the founder and owner of the Elcoteq Network corporation.

Piippo said that the rally unites businessmen, sportsmen and leading cultural figures from Scandinavia who love motorcycles and are interested in the lives of people from other countries and societies. The rally will feature 40 people on a variety of motorcycles. Stops are planned in Zelenogorsk, Komarovo and Sestroretsk in Russia.

'This year we are continuing last year's journey along the historical King's Road from Helsinki to St. Petersburg,' said Piippo. A year ago the rally went along the same road from Stockholm to Helsinki. Along the way competitors gathered a large number of congratulations for St. Petersburg's 300th jubilee from official figures. These signatures were applied to an olde-style manuscript that will be presented to St. Petersburg Governor Vladimir Yakovlev on May 22 on Palace Square.

According to the rally's organisers, the Elcoteq MC Race is a traditional event for Finnish and Scandinavian businessmen, sportsmen and cultural figures. This year it is being held for the eighth time. The idea of holding a celebration on Palace Square arose in 1999 when the race also ran through St. Petersburg. Governor Yakovlev then invited its participants to St. Petersburg for the city's 300th anniversary.

The Elcoteq MC Race is organised by Elcoteq Network and the Leningrad Cowboys company.