Asmara circuit

I am sure that there was more competition but the next major event was held on Christmas Day 1938 which attracted two Alfa Romeos from Italy as well as many locals.

[1] It was won by an "Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Monza" driven by Emilio Romano on the Christmas race called Coppa di Natale.

[2] Before there has been a race for smaller cars with less the 1500cc, that was won by a 4CS Maserati and was called Coppa Governatore.

In the main race there were 14 Alfa Romeo 1750[3] and was enthusiastically followed by many thousands of Italians and Eritreans[4] The "Primo Circuito di Asmara" was made of two car races, the first being the most important: The race was done on the streets of Italian Asmara, with the start in front of the Asmara Opera: it was long nearly 2865 meters on each side of the "Viale Milano" and "Viale Roma" (now called "Sematat avenue") and lasted 40 laps (in Italian called "Giri") for a total of 108 km[5] The second "Circuito Asmara" was to be done in December 1939, but the beginning of World War II blocked it.

[9] The last that was done in 1972[10](when was called "Gran Premio Automobilistico Expo'72"[11]) with the presence of emperor Haile Selassie[12] With the start of the Eritrean Civil Wars related to the struggle for the independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia all the car races were stopped in Asmara.

The Circuito Asmara was started in 1938. Photo of the 1950 car race, in the "III Circuito Asmara"
Emilio Romano when he won the first "Coppa di Natale" on 25 December 1938.
Eritrea Italiana. Red points are the new borders of Eritrea, enlarged in 1936 in the Governorate of Eritrea