GT Academy crowns European winner

GT Academy, the joint program between Sony and Nissan that turns Gran Turismo players into real-life race car drivers, produced its next European winner this weekend: Wolfgang Reip.

GT Academy, the joint program between Sony and Nissan that turns Gran Turismo players into real-life race car drivers, produced its next European winner this weekend: Wolfgang Reip.

Reip, a 25-year-old student from Belgium, bested more than 830,000 entrants in this year's contest, which began this spring with a qualifying round in Gran Turismo 5. By this weekend, the field had been winnowed to a six-person race at the program's Race Camp, held at Silverstone Circuit in England, and Reip took the top spot to win the competition.

"This is the most amazing day of my life," said Reip. "It is incredible, just incredible." Reip will now undergo intensive training in the GT Academy's Driver Development Program before competing in the Dubai 24 Hour race in January.

Separate GT Academy competitions for Germany, Russia, and the United States are currently under way, also at Silverstone. The American contest is down to 16 finalists.