The Dakar Rally, the annual rally-raid endurance event organized by the French Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), has long been identified by a distinctive emblem: the silhouetted head of a Tuareg wearing a traditional headcloth. The organization itself refers to this mark as the “cheich” (also spelled chèche or cheche), a term for the cloth worn around the head as protection against the sun. The “Dakar” name and the cheich logo are protected trademarks owned exclusively by the event’s organizer.[1]
Design and History
The cheich symbol has been part of the Dakar identity for decades. The Tuareg turban was first used as a symbol of the Dakar in 1982.[2] A significant visual update came in 1994, when a simplified logo with traditional lettering and a sand-colored plate was introduced, a design that remained in use with minor variations for many years.[2]
For the 2010 edition, ASO introduced a new visual identity. While the stylized Tuareg silhouette and turban remained, the traditional half-rectangular, half-circular rally plate shape was replaced with a deliberately asymmetrical form intended to evoke the dunes of South America, where the event was then held.[2]
In 2011, ASO selected the agency Havas Sports & Entertainment to create the visual for the following edition of the Dakar and its application across all communication media.[3] Annual editions have continued to receive dedicated logos and promotional posters, such as the 2014 identity unveiled by ASO at a press conference in Paris in March 2013.[4]
Meaning and Symbolism
The core symbol of the Dakar identity is the silhouette of a Tuareg, a native people of the Sahara Desert, wearing a cheich, the traditional cloth headdress worn as protection against the sun.[5] The motif directly ties the rally’s branding to the Saharan environment where the original Paris-Dakar route ran. The design was also influential beyond the event itself: the Cartier Cheich watch, created in 1983 as a prize for back-to-back Dakar winners, took its case shape from the rally logo’s Tuareg profile.[6]
Typography and Design
Official usage rules restrict how the identity may be applied. The cheich logo may only be used within the context of the “Shield,” a dedicated composite mark for teams and competitors, and never on its own. All modifications to the official Dakar visual are prohibited, and any use requires prior approval from ASO.[1]
Logo Index is an independent educational archive covering logos, visual identities and graphic design history. All trademarks and brand assets remain the property of their respective owners.
