The deserts of Kyzylkum (red sands) and Karakum (black sands) are located on the territory of Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. The Great Silk Road once passed through these deserts. If the organizers of the event decide to conduct the next race in Central Asia, the participants may also pass through the ancient cities of the East – Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva.

For the first time in its 30-year long history the famous Dakar rally was cancelled due to the security threats on the territory of Mauritania, where four French tourists were killed in December, the organizers of the rally said Friday.

In its statement, the Amaury Sport Organisation, the organizer of the 6,000km-long rally says that it had turned to the French Government for recommendation to cancel the race which was supposed to start on Saturday in the Portuguese capital, Reuters reported.

The ASO’s losses associated with the canceling of the rally are estimated at US$52 million.