Katto Third, Lubega Fifth In Pearl Rally

BY Douglas MazuneSOUTH African Johnny Gemmel left local drivers and thousands of their fans shocked by a flawless display that saw him beat them to the coveted TOTAL Pearl of Africa Uganda rally yesterday.The new African motor rally star in a Subaru Impreza led for the better part of the three-day rally to clock the quickest time of four hours 01.52 minutes. He beat second-placed Glen Edmunds of Kenya by four minutes.Emma Katto, who suffered several penalties and mechanical problems, came third in the hot race where top local drivers Charles Muhangi and Moses Lumala dropped out in the second leg on Saturday.Muhangi was forced out of the rally when he knocked dead two spectators in a cloud of dust at Busubizi in Mityana while charging closer to Charlie Lubega. Lumala retired because of a broken ball-joint.National champion Lubega finished fifth overall and second among local drivers to win the 2002 national championship.Thousands of fans who graced the first and second legs were demoralised by foreign dominance and a sizeable number did not show up for the final leg in Jinja yesterday.Ends