Tamil Nadu CM Vijay flags off Le Mans Cup at Silverstone during UK visit

England [UK], September 13 (ANI): During his first official overseas visit, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay visited the world-famous Silverstone Motor Racing Circuit in England, inspected its infrastructure facilities and flagged off the car race for the 2026 Michelin Le Mans Cup, in which renowned actor and motor racing driver Ajith Kumar participated.
Vijay personally inspected the track layout, safety systems and other infrastructural facilities there on Saturday before he flagged off the race. 
The event was attended by the Minister for Public Works and Sports Development, Aadhav Arjuna; Member Secretary of the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu, Meghanatha Reddy; and senior officials, according to the CMO.
This follows Chief Minister Vijay's announcement in the State Assembly to establish a world-class "Motor Sports City," leveraging Tamil Nadu's strong automotive and EV manufacturing ecosystem.
Actor Ajith also hailed the announcement earlier, and their meeting during the event gained widespread attention, as both have spent more than three decades being portrayed as competing stars of Tamil cinema.
Ajith publicly thanked Vijay for taking time from his official responsibilities to attend the event and expressed happiness over his former colleague's political journey. 
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay is currently on an official visit to the United Kingdom, leading a high-level delegation to attract fresh global investments and expand operations across key sectors, including advanced manufacturing, electric vehicles (EVs), electronics, and Global Capability Centres (GCCs).
The overseas outreach aims to generate large-scale employment and further solidify the state government's core objective of positioning Tamil Nadu as Asia’s leading investment-friendly destination.
The visit follows a major economic milestone achieved within 100 days of the Vijay-led administration assuming office, during which the state signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) securing investments exceeding Rs 1 lakh crore at the 'Vetri Tamil Nadu Investors’ Conference 2026', according to an official statement. (ANI)