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Israeli race car driver wins European NASCAR championship

Alon Day made history when he became the first Israeli to win NASCAR’s European circuit.

Israeli race car driver Alon Day became the first Israeli competitor to win a NASCAR series Sunday, placing first in the American motorsports giant’s European circuit.

“It is such an amazing feeling! We were trying so hard the past three years to win this title, we won so many races but never the championship,” Day said after winning the Whelen Euro championship in Belgium, Motorsport.com reported.

“Finishing the season like this is the sweetest thing I can ask,” he said. “We finally made it. I have no words right now.”

Day, 26, from Ashdod, topped the Whelen Euro standings after finishing fourth in Sunday’s race. He had only needed to complete one lap to secure the title. The Israeli driver finished second and third, respectively, in the European circuit’s previous two seasons. He has also won the Asian Formula Renault Series and the FIA GT Championship.

In January, Israel’s Ministry of Culture and Sport named Day as its Athlete of the Year for 2016.

“I’m not only doing this for myself, I’m making history for my country and so many people in the Jewish community,”  Day previously said of the NASCAR race.

By: JNS.org and World Israel News Staff