From a press release issued by Octagon Motorsports, organizer of the FIM Endurance World Championship:

Imola 200 Confirmed for 2003 World Endurance Championship

The 200 Miglia di Imola will open the World Endurance Championship next year. The classic 70s event has re-established itself as the season opener for the revitalised World Endurance Championship.

The race – the San Marino round of the championship – will take place on May 4th 2003 at the historic Imola circuit close to Bologna in Italy.

The dates for the Oscherslehen 24-Hour German round of the championship have also been confirmed as the 23rd and 24th of August. The new dates for the Oschersleben round will be popular with teams, allowing them more time to travel back from the Japanese Suzuka 8-Hour race before moving on to Germany.

With support from the FIM, the Octagon Motorsports-organised series now visits eight countries during the season, with Spain and Austria added this year. The championship has already attracted entries from 14 nations, with permanent team applications still coming in.

The final calendar is as follows:

May 4, 200 mi, Imola, San Marino
May 25, 200 mi, Assen, Holland
June 15, 6hr, Brno, Czech Republic
June 28-29, 12hr, Albacete, Spain
July 20, 6hr, A-1 Ring, Austria
August 3, 8hr, Suzuka, Japan
August 23-24, 24hr, Valencia, Germany
October 5, 200 mi, Vallelunga, Italy