GT Academy attracting rising champs

KZN GT Academy activation produces top performers. From Left: Shaun Welman (2nd place), Jacobus Volschenk (1st place) and Conrad Volschenk (4th place).

KZN GT Academy activation produces top performers. From Left: Shaun Welman (2nd place), Jacobus Volschenk (1st place) and Conrad Volschenk (4th place).

Published Nov 15, 2012

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Having attended the GT Academy’s live activation at the Gateway Theatre of Shopping in Kwa-Zulu Natal on November 2-4, 28-year-old Jacobus Volschenk set the fastest lap time of the weekend, 1min 32.189secs.

The fastest PlayStation gamers from South Africa will join winners from a number of live events to compete in a national final in January.

The action will then make the transition from the virtual world of PS3 to real Nissan sports cars when the winners of the national competition are invited to take part in the international Race Camp competition at the Silverstone circuit in England with finalists from the Middle East.

The ultimate winner will then be put through an intensive driver development programme to prepare them for the chance to take part in the challenging Silverstone 24 Hours next year – the ultimate competition prize.

More than 2.3 million hopefuls have tried out for GT Academy virtual-to-reality race competition since 2008, and graduates have so far netted a second place finish at the legendary Le Mans 24 Hour race, a championship win in the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup and most recently a podium finish in the World Endurance Championship.

In January, an all-gamer line-up made history when they finished on the podium of the Dubai 24-hour race.

The programme that set these drivers on their path to motor sport fame has now come to South Africa for the first time.

An exclusive, free to download gaming format went live on October 15 and will remain open until December 10. An eight-step qualification programme, which can be played online by anyone with a PlayStation3 (PS3), uses the best-selling Gran Turismo5 as a base.

Participants can also enter through one of the live events at the following shopping centres:

November 17: Fourways Crossing, 11am-3pm

November 18: Menlyn Park, 11am-3pm

November 23: Sandton City, 9am-8pm

November 24: Sandton City, 9am-8pm

November 25: Sandton City, 9am-6pm

December 1: Mall@Reds, 11am-3pm

December 2: Maponya Mall, 11am-3pm

More details on http://gran-turismo.com

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