The Greece Rally returns this year to the place where the event once began. From Sunday 20 to Saturday 26 September, 77 competitors will ride a seven-day cross-country rally through northern Greece, starting from the Elpida Resort & Spa in Serres, with a marathon stage along the Bulgarian border and a stopover on the coast at Kavala. Defending champion Stefan Svitko is chasing his seventh overall victory, now for the first time on a Ducati.
The Netherlands is strongly represented, as with nineteen entries our country provides the largest foreign delegation. In the SSV class, six of the eight teams come from the Netherlands, and the quad class is even entirely Dutch. That follows on from last year, when Dutch teams occupied the full SSV podium on the final day.
Back to the birthplace
After a 2025 edition that diverted to Bulgaria on the marathon days, the route stays entirely on Greek soil this year, in the regions of Serres, Drama, Xanthi, Kavala and Thessaloniki. The organisation presents the return to Serres as the central theme of this edition, with the slogan “7 days, 1700 kms, no excuses”.
The bivouac and scrutineering are concentrated around the Elpida Resort on the edge of Serres. The administrative and technical checks are scheduled for Saturday 19 September, and the paddocks have been open since Thursday 17 September.
Svitko starts a new chapter
The big favourite among the bikes is Stefan Svitko (#142, Slovnaft Rally Team). The Slovak won the Greece Rally for the sixth time last year and finished second in the 2016 Dakar Rally. His build-up to this edition was anything but standard. During January’s Dakar Rally he broke his collarbone on the third stage, after which he was forced to withdraw. In May he announced he was leaving KTM after 23 years and switching to Ducati.
His main challenger appears to be compatriot Norbert Bucko (#21, DNB Trans), who finished second behind Svitko on several days last year. Roberto Barbieri, who won the rally three times and finished second last year, and the Norwegian Hans Kristian Dovland are not on the list this year. Among the Greek entrants, Giannis Sevastopoulos (#5, Yamaha WR450F) is a name to watch; he was repeatedly the fastest Greek last year.
Nineteen Dutch competitors
Bikes
The Dutch field among the bikes is dominated by Memo Tours, which fields six of the eight Dutch riders in the competition classes. In the M1 class, Dennis Schans (#11) and Nico Dekker (#14) both start on a Husqvarna FE 350, alongside Jaap Martens (#15, KTM 350 EXC) and Frank de Mik (#18, KTM EXC-F 350). Martens also competes in the veterans classification for riders over 55.
In the M2 class, Henk Nijmeijer (#211) and Bert Veenje (#215) ride for Memo Tours Team, both on a KTM 450 EXC. Nijmeijer is likewise entered as a veteran. Ruben van der Vlis (#24, Riding Adventures) rides a KTM 450, and Robbert Plarina (#210) starts without a team listing on a KTM 450 EXC.
SSV
In the SSV class, the Netherlands forms the majority. QFF Racing brings three Can-Ams to the start: Kees Box (#85, Maverick 1000R), Ruud Vollebregt (#86, Maverick X3) and Kenny de Vries (#87, Maverick X3). Box won the final day in this class last year together with Kees Box Jr. Also competing are Harm Lolkema (#82, Lolkema Adventure Team) on a Yamaha YXZ1000, Rene van Eerd (#83, Van Eerd Racing) on a Can-Am Maverick X3 and Wil Wouters (#84, Memo Tours Team) on a Polaris RZR Ultimate Pro. Van Eerd and Wouters also compete in the veterans classification. The Dutch face competition from the Bulgarian Konstantin Cholakov (#88, IMS Racing) and the Greek Giannis Varvakis (#81, Euroenergy), both on a Can-Am Maverick R.
Quads
The quad class consists of just two competitors, both from Van Eerd Racing and both on a Yamaha 700: Roy van Eerd (#61), entered as a rookie, and Kenny van Eerd (#62). With such a small field, the quad classification is above all a head-to-head battle, in which finishing is the first challenge.
Rally Challenge
In the Rally Challenge, with an adapted route and permission for GPS navigation, three Dutch riders start. Lars de Backker (#200, Braaap Goat) makes his debut as a rookie on a Beta 480 RR. Nico Keijzer (#400) and Dave Ouwehand (#500) ride for Riding Adventures, Keijzer as a veteran on a Husqvarna 350 and Ouwehand on a KTM 1290 Super Adventure R, by far the heaviest machine in the Dutch contingent.
The route day by day
According to the provisional timetable, the rally features ten special stages totalling 1,011 kilometres, over a total distance of 1,455.5 kilometres. About fifteen percent of the route is on asphalt. The opening day consists of an eighteen-kilometre prologue in the hills near Eleonas, followed by the ceremonial start on the central square of Serres. Monday brings the toughest task of the week straight away: SS2 Mountains, a 283-kilometre stage through the area around the Lailias ski resort, Agistro and the Menikio mountains, with altitudes of over 1,500 metres. The timetable allows 5.5 to more than 9 hours of riding for it.
Tuesday and Wednesday make up the marathon. The first day runs via SS3 Menikio (81 km) and the Nestos valley to SS4 Rodopi (152 km) along the Bulgarian border, with the finish at the Erymanthos Forest Village at 1,350 metres altitude. The second day returns to the coast via SS5 Lekani-Paggeo (125 km), with a four-hour regrouping on the beach at Kavala, and ends back in Serres after SS6 Symvolo (35 km). Thursday is a short day, with the twenty-kilometre Bosdakas Crossing over the bare Menikio plateau. Friday brings SS8 Volvi (118 km) and SS9 Sochos (68 km) in the hills above lakes Volvi and Koronia, after which Saturday’s SS10 Vertiskos (111 km) closes out the rally. The prize-giving follows that evening at the Elpida Resort.
The marathon days call for a different approach from the rest of the week. There are no fuel stations on the Rodopi ridge; refuelling is done at a fixed point with jerrycans. Changing tyres is prohibited during the marathon; anyone who does so anyway receives a thirty-minute time penalty. For the overnight stay in the forest village, competitors can choose between their own tent or a place in one of the wooden cabins for a small fee.
Navigation is done exclusively with roadbook. A GPS may only be used as a compass, except in the Rally Challenge class and the Adventure Tour, which ride an adapted route. The route remains secret until the evening before the stage.
An important point of note: the special stages are also run on roads that are open to other traffic. Competitors must observe Greek traffic rules and watch out for tractors, trucks, herds of animals and hikers.
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