Adelaide only three weeks away

- The Race of a Thousand Years could not take place without the help of volunteer marshals who ensure the smooth running of all the on-track action. In total, there are more than 900 volunteer officials involved including four from the U.S., two from the U.K. and one from New Zealand. Marshals from every state in Australia also will play a vital role including scrutineers, pit lane marshals, timing officials, flag marshals, fire fighters and communications experts.

- Race fans with grandstand tickets can now collect their complimentary ticket holder and Le Mans Adelaide lanyard from the Race of a Thousand Years office at 186 Pulteney Street. The ticket holder features a complimentary event circuit map which details all facilities and trackside activities. This exclusive offer is for grandstand ticket holders only.

- Venezuelan beauty Milka Duno is set to show that Le Mans Adelaide will not be a "boys only" event. The 28-year-old driver will contest the Race of a Thousand Years aboard a Dodge Viper in the GTS class. A former model, Duno is managed by former British sportscar ace, Vic Elford. But for Milka, she enjoys both brains and beauty, having completed five master's degrees - naval engineering, business organisation, marine business, naval architecture and marine biology. In her professional life, she designs oil recovery ships and is also talented on the track, having finished 3rd in last year's Women's Global GT Series.

- One of the most significant awards that will be presented at the Le Mans Series awards ceremony at the Adelaide Oval on January 1 will be the second annual "From The Fans" award. Fans of the Le Mans Series have the opportunity to vote online at www.americanlemans.com. The voting is for the person who has done the most for sports car racing during the 2000 season. The name of the recipient will remain a closely-guarded secret until being revealed during the awards ceremony. The recipient of the first award in 1999 was Le Mans Series founder Don Panoz.

- V8 Supercar star Greg Murphy is a last minute scratching from the Hanson Centre for Cancer Research Le Mans Adelaide lunch scheduled for Wednesday. Murphy is on his way to the U.S. to test the Panoz LMP-1 sportscar. The test was originally scheduled for last week, but was delayed. However, Murphy will still address the luncheon via a video message recorded prior to his departure.

- Spectators will be able to listen to all the action from Le Mans Adelaide on Track TV-FM throughout the three-day event. By tuning your radio to 91.9, you will catch all the latest on-track action from the expert commentary team which will include Leigh Diffey plus Network Ten's Mark Aiston, Grant Denyer and Craig Denyer.

- Panoz Motor Sport lost one of its key members last week with the death of team Technical Director, John Baldwin . Baldwin, who was 59, died of heart failure in the early hours of Tuesday morning (28th) while in Kershaw, South Carolina where the Panoz team had been testing. With years of experience in Formula One and Indycars, Baldwin had played a key role in the development of the new 2001 Panoz Le Mans Series Prototype.

- The first Le Mans Series mechanics and crew are set to arrive in Adelaide on December 20. Representatives from the Audi and DAMS Cadillac teams will be set to enjoy a warm Christmas - escaping from the cold conditions which prevail across Europe and the U.S.

Paul Ryan - ryan@panoz.com.au - www.lemansadelaide.com.au