sport rally japan
Sapporo is known outside Japan for having hosted the 1972 Winter Olympics , the first ever held in Asia , and for the city ' s annual " Yuki Matsuri ", internationally referred to as the Sapporo Snow Festival , which draws more than 2 million tourists from around the world . The city is also home to Sapporo Brewery and the white chocolate biscuits called . ___MASK42___ Japan (  ) is a ___MASK42___ competition held in Hokkaid , Japan . The event has been part of the FIA World ___MASK42___ Championship since its introduction during the 2004 season . From 2004 to 2007 , the event was held on the twisty and narrow gravel roads of the Tokachi region near Obihiro . For the 2008 season , the event was moved to the region close to Sapporo , Hokkaid ' s main city . ___MASK42___ Japan was not held in 2009 , but returned in 2010 . The 1972 Winter Olympics , officially known as the ( French : Les " XIes Jeux olympiques d ' hiver "), were a winter multi - ___MASK78___ event which was held from February 3 to February 13 , 1972 , in Sapporo , Hokkaid , Japan . It was the first Winter Olympics to be held outside Europe and North America , and only the third game ( summer or winter ) held outside those regions over all , after Melbourne ( 1956 Summer Olympics ) and Tokyo ( 1964 Summer Olympics ). ___MASK52___ is a form of ___MASK25___ that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road - legal cars . It is distinguished by running not on a circuit , but instead in a point - to - point format in which participants and their co - drivers drive between set control points ( special stages ), leaving at regular intervals from one or more start points . Rallies may be won by pure speed within the stages or alternatively by driving to a predetermined ideal journey time within the stages . The World ___MASK42___ Championship ( WRC ) is a rallying series organised by the FIA , culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer . The driver ' s world championship and manufacturer ' s world championship are separate championships , but based on the same point system . The series currently consists of 13 three - day events driven on surfaces ranging from gravel and tarmac to snow and ice . Each ___MASK42___ is split into 15  25 special stages which are run against the clock on closed roads .