The 2003 Acropolis Rally (formally the 50th Golden Acropolis Rally) was the sixth round of the 2003 World Rally Championship. The race was held over three days between 6 June and 8 June 2003, and was based in Lamia, Greece. Ford's Markko Märtin won the race, his 1st win in the World Rally Championship.[1]

2003 Acropolis Rally
50th Golden Acropolis Rally
Round 6 of the 2003 World Rally Championship season
← Previous eventNext event →
Host country Greece
Rally baseLamia
Dates runJune 6, 2003 – June 8, 2003
Stages22 (399.49 km; 248.23 miles)
Stage surfaceGravel
Overall distance1,441.37 km (895.63 miles)
Statistics
Crews83 at start, 37 at finish
Overall results
Overall winnerEstonia Markko Märtin
United Kingdom Michael Park
United Kingdom Ford Motor Co. Ltd.
Ford Focus RS WRC '03

Background

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Entry list

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No. Driver Co-Driver Entrant Car Tyre
World Rally Championship manufacturer entries
1   Marcus Grönholm   Timo Rautiainen   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC M
2   Richard Burns   Robert Reid   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC M
3   Harri Rovanperä   Risto Pietiläinen   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC M
4   Markko Märtin   Michael Park   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '03 M
5   François Duval   Stéphane Prévot   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '03 M
6   Mikko Hirvonen   Jarmo Lehtinen   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '02 M
7   Petter Solberg   Phil Mills   555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 P
8   Tommi Mäkinen   Kaj Lindström   555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 P
10   Armin Schwarz   Manfred Hiemer   Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai Accent WRC3 M
11   Freddy Loix   Sven Smeets   Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai Accent WRC3 M
12   Jussi Välimäki   Tero Gardemeister   Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai Accent WRC3 M
14   Didier Auriol   Denis Giraudet   Škoda Motorsport Škoda Octavia WRC Evo3 M
15   Toni Gardemeister   Paavo Lukander   Škoda Motorsport Škoda Octavia WRC Evo3 M
17   Colin McRae   Derek Ringer   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC M
18   Sébastien Loeb   Daniel Elena   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC M
19   Carlos Sainz   Marc Martí   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC M
World Rally Championship entries
20   Jari-Matti Latvala   Carl Williamson   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '02 M
21   Gilles Panizzi   Hervé Panizzi   Bozian Racing Peugeot 206 WRC M
22   Roman Kresta   Miloš Hůlka   Bozian Racing Peugeot 206 WRC M
23   Antony Warmbold   Gemma Price   AW Rally Team Ford Focus RS WRC '02 M
24   Juuso Pykälistö   Esko Mertsalmi   Bozian Racing Peugeot 206 WRC M
25   Daniel Solà   Álex Romaní   Citroën Sport Citroën Xsara WRC M
26   Manfred Stohl   Ilka Minor   Manfred Stohl Hyundai Accent WRC3 M
32   Alistair Ginley   Rory Kennedy   Alistair Ginley Ford Focus RS WRC '01
33   Tomasz Kuchar   Maciek Szczepaniak   Tomasz Kuchar Ford Focus RS WRC '02 M
34   Armodios Vovos   Loris Meletopoulos   Armodios Vovos Ford Focus RS WRC '01
35   Ioannis Papadimitriou   Allan Harryman   Ioannis Papadimitriou Ford Focus RS WRC'01 P
101   Jozef Béreš Jr.   Petr Starý   Styllex Tuning Motorsport Toyota Corolla WRC
JWRC entries
51   Mirco Baldacci   Giovanni Bernacchini   Purity Auto Fiat Punto S1600 M
52   Daniel Carlsson   Matthias Andersson   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 M
54   Kosti Katajamäki   Miikka Anttila   Volkswagen Racing Volkswagen Polo S1600 M
55   Martin Stenshorne   Clive Jenkins   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Puma S1600 M
57   Dimitar Iliev   Petar Sivov   Auto Sport Italia Peugeot 206 S1600 M
58   Marcos Ligato   Rubén Garcia   Top Run SRL Fiat Punto S1600 M
59   Beppo Harrach   Michael Kölbach   Astra Racing Ford Puma S1600 M
61   Brice Tirabassi   Jacques-Julien Renucci   Renault Sport Renault Clio S1600 M
62   Oscar Svedlund   Björn Nilsson   Volkswagen Racing Volkswagen Polo S1600 M
63   Massimo Ceccato   Mitia Dotta   Top Run SRL Fiat Punto S1600 M
64   Ville-Pertti Teuronen   Harri Kaapro   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 M
65   Abdo Feghali   Joseph Matar   Astra Racing Ford Puma S1600 M
67   Alessandro Broccoli   Simona Girelli   Sab Motorsport Opel Corsa S1600 M
69   Salvador Cañellas Jr.   Xavier Amigó   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 M
70   Guy Wilks   Phil Pugh   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Puma S1600 M
71   Urmo Aava   Kuldar Sikk   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 M
73   Krum Donchev   Ruman Manolov   Auto Sport Italia Opel Corsa S1600 M
74   Kris Meeke   Chris Patterson   Opel Motorsport Opel Corsa S1600 M
76   Luca Cecchettini   Marco Muzzarelli   Top Run SRL Fiat Punto S1600 M
78   Vladan Vasiljevic   Sebastian Geipel   Volkswagen Racing Volkswagen Polo S1600 M
Source:[2]

Itinerary

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All dates and times are EEST (UTC 3).

Date Time No. Stage name Distance
Leg 1 — 145.74 km
6 June 08:18 SS1 Pavliani 1 24.45 km
09:07 SS2 Stromi 1 14.61 km
10:10 SS3 Eleftherohori 18.67 km
12:18 SS4 Rengini 1 11.84 km
12:46 SS5 Elatia — Zeli 1 34.68 km
15:37 SS6 Pavliani 2 24.45 km
16:26 SS7 Stromi 2 14.61 km
18:01 SS8 SSS Lilea — Parnassos 1 2.43 km
Leg 2 — 148.71 km
7 June 06:56 SS9 Mendenitsa 17.34 km
08:21 SS10 Bauxites 1 23.45 km
09:44 SS11 Drosohori 1 17.76 km
12:17 SS12 Rengini 2 11.84 km
12:45 SS13 Elatia — Zeli 2 34.68 km
16:03 SS14 Bauxites 2 23.45 km
17:26 SS15 Drosohori 2 17.76 km
18:18 SS16 SSS Lilea — Parnassos 2 2.43 km
Leg 3 — 105.04 km
8 June 09:28 SS17 Dikastro 1 18.40 km
10:06 SS18 New Tarzan 1 20.65 km
11:04 SS19 Agios Stefanos 1 13.47 km
13:32 SS20 Dikastro 2 18.40 km
14:10 SS21 New Tarzan 2 20.65 km
15:08 SS22 Agios Stefanos 2 13.47 km

Results

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Overall

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Pos. No. Driver Co-driver Team Car Time Difference Points
1 4   Markko Märtin   Michael Park   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '03 4:53:40.5 10
2 19   Carlos Sainz   Marc Martí   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC 4:54:26.5 46.0 8
3 7   Petter Solberg   Phil Mills   555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 4:54:33.2 52.7 6
4 2   Richard Burns   Robert Reid   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC 4:55:47.1 2:06.6 5
5 8   Tommi Mäkinen   Kaj Lindström   555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 4:55:52.8 2:12.3 4
6 3   Harri Rovanperä   Risto Pietiläinen   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC 4:57:25.2 3:44.7 3
7 21   Gilles Panizzi   Hervé Panizzi   Bozian Racing Peugeot 206 WRC 4:57:34.8 3:54.3 2
8 17   Colin McRae   Derek Ringer   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC 4:57:45.5 4:05.0 1

World Rally Cars

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Classification

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Position No. Driver Co-driver Entrant Car Time Difference Points
Event Class
1 1 4   Markko Märtin   Michael Park   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '03 4:53:40.5 10
2 2 19   Carlos Sainz   Marc Martí   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC 4:54:26.5 46.0 8
3 3 7   Petter Solberg   Phil Mills   555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 4:54:33.2 52.7 6
4 4 2   Richard Burns   Robert Reid   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC 4:55:47.1 2:06.6 5
5 5 8   Tommi Mäkinen   Kaj Lindström   555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 4:55:52.8 2:12.3 4
6 6 3   Harri Rovanperä   Risto Pietiläinen   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC 4:57:25.2 3:44.7 3
8 7 17   Colin McRae   Derek Ringer   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC 4:57:45.5 4:05.0 1
9 8 14   Didier Auriol   Denis Giraudet   Škoda Motorsport Škoda Octavia WRC Evo3 5:00:07.7 6:27.2 0
Retired SS9 1   Marcus Grönholm   Timo Rautiainen   Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot 206 WRC Fuel pump 0
Retired SS9 12   Jussi Välimäki   Tero Gardemeister   Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai Accent WRC3 Clutch 0
Retired SS6 6   Mikko Hirvonen   Jarmo Lehtinen   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '02 Suspension 0
Retired SS6 15   Toni Gardemeister   Paavo Lukander   Škoda Motorsport Škoda Octavia WRC Evo3 Turbo 0
Retired SS5 5   François Duval   Stéphane Prévot   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Focus RS WRC '03 Accident 0
Retired SS3 11   Freddy Loix   Sven Smeets   Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai Accent WRC3 Suspension 0
Retired SS1 10   Armin Schwarz   Manfred Hiemer   Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai Accent WRC3 Alternator 0
Retired SS1 18   Sébastien Loeb   Daniel Elena   Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC Engine 0

Special stages

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Day Stage Stage name Length Winner Car Time Class leaders
Leg 1 (6 Jun) SS1 Pavliani 1 24.45 km   François Duval Ford Focus RS WRC '03 19:54.7   François Duval
SS2 Stromi 1 14.61 km   Markko Märtin Ford Focus RS WRC '03 11:40.2   Markko Märtin
SS3 Eleftherohori 18.67 km   Harri Rovanperä Peugeot 206 WRC 11:28.2
SS4 Rengini 1 11.84 km   Harri Rovanperä Peugeot 206 WRC 8:41.8
SS5 Elatia — Zeli 1 34.68 km   Harri Rovanperä Peugeot 206 WRC 24:21.9
SS6 Pavliani 2 24.45 km   Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 19:29.5
SS7 Stromi 2 14.61 km   Marcus Grönholm Peugeot 206 WRC 11:25.6
SS8 SSS Lilea — Parnassos 1 2.43 km Stage cancelled
Leg 2 (7 Jun) SS9 Mendenitsa 17.34 km   Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 10:55.0
SS10 Bauxites 1 23.45 km   Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 14:14.8
SS11 Drosohori 1 17.76 km   Markko Märtin Ford Focus RS WRC '03 14:48.6
SS12 Rengini 2 11.84 km   Harri Rovanperä Peugeot 206 WRC 8:30.2
SS13 Elatia — Zeli 2 34.68 km   Markko Märtin Ford Focus RS WRC '03 23:44.2
SS14 Bauxites 2 23.45 km   Markko Märtin Ford Focus RS WRC '03 13:51.9
SS15 Drosohori 2 17.76 km   Markko Märtin Ford Focus RS WRC '03 14:23.6
SS16 SSS Lilea — Parnassos 2 2.43 km   Carlos Sainz Citroën Xsara WRC 1:57.6
Leg 3 (8 Jun) SS17 Dikastro 1 18.40 km   Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 16:08.7
SS18 New Tarzan 1 20.65 km   Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 15:27.8
SS19 Agios Stefanos 1 13.47 km   Tommi Mäkinen Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 10:02.6
SS20 Dikastro 2 18.40 km   Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 15:58.3
SS21 New Tarzan 2 20.65 km   Carlos Sainz Citroën Xsara WRC 15:10.3
SS22 Agios Stefanos 2 13.47 km   Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza S9 WRC '03 9:46.7

Championship standings

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Pos. Drivers' championships Co-drivers' championships Manufacturers' championships
Move Driver Points Move Co-driver Points Move Manufacturer Points
1     Richard Burns 37     Robert Reid 37     Marlboro Peugeot Total 73
2   2   Carlos Sainz 32   2   Marc Martí 32     Citroën Total WRT 62
3   1   Marcus Grönholm 30   1   Timo Rautiainen 30     Ford Motor Co. Ltd. 39
4   2   Markko Märtin 23   2   Michael Park 23     555 Subaru World Rally Team 37
5   1   Petter Solberg 19   1   Phil Mills 19     Škoda Motorsport 20

Junior World Rally Championship

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Classification

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Position No. Driver Co-driver Entrant Car Time Difference Points
Event Class
17 1 61   Brice Tirabassi   Jacques-Julien Renucci   Renault Sport Renault Clio S1600 5:27:34.0 10
18 2 52   Daniel Carlsson   Matthias Andersson   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 5:28:29.2 55.2 8
19 3 71   Urmo Aava   Kuldar Sikk   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 5:35:02.7 7:28.7 6
22 4 69   Salvador Cañellas Jr.   Xavier Amigó   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 5:40:55.2 13:21.2 5
27 5 62   Oscar Svedlund   Björn Nilsson   Volkswagen Racing Volkswagen Polo S1600 5:49:22.1 21:48.1 4
33 6 70   Guy Wilks   Phil Pugh   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Puma S1600 6:04:08.1 36:34.1 3
Retired SS21 51   Mirco Baldacci   Giovanni Bernacchini   Purity Auto Fiat Punto S1600 Mechanical 0
Retired SS17 63   Massimo Ceccato   Mitia Dotta   Top Run SRL Fiat Punto S1600 Engine 0
Retired SS17 76   Luca Cecchettini   Marco Muzzarelli   Top Run SRL Fiat Punto S1600 Engine 0
Retired SS11 54   Kosti Katajamäki   Miikka Anttila   Volkswagen Racing Volkswagen Polo S1600 Gearbox 0
Retired SS11 67   Alessandro Broccoli   Simona Girelli   Sab Motorsport Opel Corsa S1600 Driveshaft 0
Retired SS10 55   Martin Stenshorne   Clive Jenkins   Ford Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Puma S1600 Alternator 0
Retired SS7 64   Ville-Pertti Teuronen   Harri Kaapro   Suzuki Sport Suzuki Ignis S1600 Driveshaft 0
Retired SS5 57   Dimitar Iliev   Petar Sivov   Auto Sport Italia Peugeot 206 S1600 Engine 0
Retired SS5 73   Krum Donchev   Ruman Manolov   Auto Sport Italia Opel Corsa S1600 Lost wheel 0
Retired SS4 65   Abdo Feghali   Joseph Matar   Astra Racing Ford Puma S1600 Engine 0
Retired SS2 59   Beppo Harrach   Michael Kölbach   Astra Racing Ford Puma S1600 Lost wheel 0
Retired SS1 58   Marcos Ligato   Rubén Garcia   Top Run SRL Fiat Punto S1600 Steering 0
Retired SS1 74   Kris Meeke   Chris Patterson   Opel Motorsport Opel Corsa S1600 Steering 0
Retired SS1 78   Vladan Vasiljevic   Sebastian Geipel   Volkswagen Racing Volkswagen Polo S1600 Accident 0

Special stages

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Day Stage Stage name Length Winner Car Time Class leaders
Leg 1 (6 Jun) SS1 Pavliani 1 24.45 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 21:50.4   Brice Tirabassi
SS2 Stromi 1 14.61 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 12:57.0
SS3 Eleftherohori 18.67 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 12:45.3
SS4 Rengini 1 11.84 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 9:52.4
SS5 Elatia — Zeli 1 34.68 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 27:17.5
SS6 Pavliani 2 24.45 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 21:36.6
SS7 Stromi 2 14.61 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 12:47.5
SS8 SSS Lilea — Parnassos 1 2.43 km Stage cancelled
Leg 2 (7 Jun) SS9 Mendenitsa 17.34 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 12:30.5
SS10 Bauxites 1 23.45 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 16:01.7
SS11 Drosohori 1 17.76 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 16:28.7
SS12 Rengini 2 11.84 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 9:45.0
SS13 Elatia — Zeli 2 34.68 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 27:04.4
SS14 Bauxites 2 23.45 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 15:39.6
SS15 Drosohori 2 17.76    Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 16:05.3
SS16 SSS Lilea — Parnassos 2 2.43 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 2:08.9
Leg 3 (8 Jun) SS17 Dikastro 1 18.40 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 17:59.8
SS18 New Tarzan 1 20.65 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 16:58.0
SS19 Agios Stefanos 1 13.47 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 11:04.8
SS20 Dikastro 2 18.40 km   Brice Tirabassi Renault Clio S1600 17:47.0
SS21 New Tarzan 2 20.65 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 16:51.6
SS22 Agios Stefanos 2 13.47 km   Daniel Carlsson Suzuki Ignis S1600 10:56.4

Championship standings

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Pos. Drivers' championships
Move Driver Points
1     Brice Tirabassi 20
2   2   Salvador Cañellas Jr. 13
3   4   Urmo Aava 11
4   2   Kosti Katajamäki 10
5   1   Guy Wilks 9

References

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  1. ^ "Rally Acropolis". juwra.com. Independent WRC archive. Retrieved 2021-11-10.
  2. ^ "Acropolis Rally 2003 Entry List". Retrieved 10 November 2021.
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