When the General Directorate of Border Guard isn’t patrolling Saudi Arabia’s coasts and land borders, its members race.

The Saudi Border Guard, as the team is called, enjoyed a strong outing at last weekend’s Jeddah Rally to end the 2024 Saudi Toyota Championship when its Nissan Patrols finished first and second in the Stock class. If not for Faisal Al-Sharari having a disappointing Stage #2, the guards could have swept the podium.

Jafar Al-Qahtani, a sergeant in the force, was second behind teammate Mohammed Asiri after the first stage, setting a time of 2:37:43 to Asiri’s 2:28:46. He rebounded the next day with the 14th fastest time overall at 1:19:08 compared while Asiri had a frustrating day plagued by mechanical issues as he finished fourth in class with a 1:51:49. Sufian Alomer, who is not part of the Border Guard, was second to join them on the podium.

With the win, Al-Qahtani narrowly secured the championship in his class.

Overseen by Major General Shaya Al-Wadaani, the Border Guard Team has been in operation since 2014 with formal backing of the Saudi government. Given its status as being part of a government agency, the team has enjoyed some benefits like having its entry fees waived for the 2016 Ha’il International Rally to reward them for their work in guarding the southern border during the Yemeni civil war and Saudi Arabia’s intervention in the conflict. The outfit finished third in the 2023 FIA Middle East Cup for Cross-Country Bajas’ (now FIA Middle East Baja Cup) team championship.

“The Saudi Border Guard Rally Team achieved first and second place in the Jeddah Rally, the fourth and final round of the 2024 Toyota Saudi Championship in the T2 Stock category,” begins a statement from the General Directorate of Border Guard.

“The team, sports, and athletes receive significant attention and support from the Director General of the Border Guard, Major General Shaya bin Salem Al-Wadani, and is overseen by a specialized administrative and technical staff.”

Stock results

Finish	Overall	Number	Driver	Navigator	Team	Vehicle	Time	Margin
1	16	502	Jafar Al-Qahtani	Hussam Al-Zahrani	Saudi Border Guard	Nissan Patrol	3:56:51	Leader
2	20	504	Mohammed Asiri	Sulaiman Aloraini	Saudi Border Guard	Nissan Patrol	4:20:35	+ 23:44
3	21	501	Sufian Alomer	Mohammed Innab	Sufian Alomer	Nissan Patrol	4:23:38	+ 26:47
4	24	506	Faisal Al-Sharari	Mazen Al-Saeedi	Saudi Border Guard	Nissan Patrol	4:48:12	+ 51:21
5	28	500	Majed Al-Thunyyan	Fahad Sulaiman Alomar	Torq Racing	Nissan Patrol	12:20:14	+ 8:23:23

Featured image credit: Saudi Border Guard