Tragedy at the Villa de Tineo Rally. The pilot Julio César Castrillo and his co-pilot, Francisco Javier Álvarez, died this Saturday afternoon when they crashed into a tree. His Citroën DS3 N5 suffered a serious run off the road at the end of the stage, in the area of the Fuejo descent. The fateful accident occurred in the sixth special, the test with which the regional rally championship began. Once the seriousness of the mishap was known, the organization decided to end the test.
Julio César Castrillo and Francisco Javier Álvarez, both from Oviedo, were much loved in the motor world, having been linked to racing for more than twenty years. Castrillo, ran the Café Bar Rally in the Vallobín neighborhood in Oviedo, and it was common to see him in the rallies since his debut in 1997. After a few years of inactivity, in 2021 he returned to the competition.
For his part, Francisco Javier Álvarez had a proven sports career. He was the co-driver of Roberto Solís, with whom he won the Peugeot Challenge in the 1999 season, which allowed him to be part of the official Peugeot Spain team the following year. He also accompanied other Asturian pilots such as Alberto Hevia, Jonathan Pérez, and Ángel Paniceres in national competitions.
Tribute
Some test participants, as well as organizers and federation representatives, met in the Tineo town hall square to pay tribute to the deceased.
The death of the two participants has caused a great commotion in Tineo, which has spread to the rest of Asturias. The President of the Principality, Adrián Barbón, has been “very sad” about what happened “and has conveyed his support to the family and friends of Julio César Castrillo and Francisco Javier Álvarez.
«A lot of pain with this terrible news, which leaves us all sunk. I am truly sorry,” Barbón said after communicating with the mayor of Tineo, José Ramón Feito.
A historical proof
In 1979 Asturias saw the birth of the Villa de Tineo Rally, one of the pioneering and longest-running automobile competitions in Asturias. Forty-four years later, the race continues to be one of the most important events, both socially and economically, in Tineo, only interrupted during the pandemic period.
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