Rory Kennedy bows out of Rally Zhangye

RORY Kennedy’s bid for glory at Rally Zhangye in the Gansu Province of China came to an abrupt end.

The Letterkenny man, (pictured above), who last month co-drove for Donegal Rally winner Garry Jennings, was calling the notes for Niall McShea in the baking hot Chinese heat.

Renowned navigator Kennedy noted that the conditions at the rally, most of which took place in the Gobi Desert, were ‘unbearable’.

Kennedy and McShea had been traveling well, but the Skoda Fabia encountered engine difficulty and the pair had to retire from the event.

After Chris Atkinson’s VW Golf retired near the end, the win was claimed by the Subaru of Mark Higgins, Kennedy’s old compatriot with whom he rode shotgun for many rallies in the past.