Ahmad Al Harthy, the reigning Porsche Carrera Cup GB Pro-Am 1 Champion, has expanded his 2013 motor racing programme after officially confirming he will contest the Blancpain Endurance Series alongside his existing commitments in the British GT Championship.With headline backing from long-time sponsor National Bank of Oman, in addition to key support from telecommunications provider Nawras, the Oman Ministry of Tourism and Oman Ministry of Sports Affairs, the 31-year-old from Muscat will race an ARC Bratislava-entered Porsche 997 GT3R.Round one of the 2013 Blancpain Endurance Series, a three-hour spectacular, takes place at the world-famous Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Italy tomorrow, Sunday, 14th April, where Ahmad will team-up with Miro Konpkaowner of the Slovakian ARC squad.Following this weekends season-opening event, the series will visit Silverstone in the UK and Paul Ricard in southern France for two more three-hour contests. After that the category will prepare for its blue riband race meeting, the Total 24 Hours of Spa at the famous Belgian track, in late July and the season will conclude with a 1,000-kilometre event at Germanys Nurburgring in September.Like British GT, the Blancpain Endurance Series features thoroughbred racing versions of the worlds most exotic and desirable sportscars. In addition to Porsche, the likes of Ferrari, Lamborghini, BMW, McLaren, Mercedes and Aston Martin will all be in action at Monzaand an incredible capacity grid of 60 cars is expected to line-up for the first race of the 2013 Blancpain season.On behalf of everyone involved with the National Bank of Oman Racing Team, I want to say how excited we are to be able to race in Blancpain this year, said Ahmad, This is a major step forward in my career and there will be a huge amount to learn, but competing alongside the best endurance racing teams in Europe, some of the best in the world, is where we want to be and need to be.Im very thankful to National Bank of Oman and Nawras, as well as the Omani government through the Ministry of Sports Affairs and Ministry of Tourism, for their incredible support and to enable me to add racing in Blancpain to my British GT commitments. None of the races clash, they complement each other perfectly and give me a fantastic opportunity to learn as much as I possibly can.Prestigious sponsorship portfolio makes Blancpain bid possibleMarking a hugely important milestone in the Omani stars career, his step-up into pan-European competition takes his motor racing onto an even greater leveland also opens up significant new marketing opportunities for his prestigious portfolio of sponsors.Nawras, Ahmads official telecommunications partner, is thrilled to be adding exposure in Blancpain to its involvement in British GT with the Omani racer as the company rapidly increases its offerings across the mobile communications spectrum, including 4G connectivity.Anwar Salim Al-Habsi, Nawras Senior Supervisor-Sponsorship, said: We are delighted to extend our support of Ahmad into the Blancpain championship, his success last year racing in the UK was of huge benefit to Nawras and this move into Europe is a natural progression. Nawras is constantly improving its customer experience, is fast growing and its latest claim Life Got Even Faster is a perfect fit for Ahmads racing career as he takes it onto the next level in Europe.In addition to corporate support from National Bank of Oman and Nawras, Ahmad importantly has the steadfast backing of both the Oman Ministry of Tourism and Oman Ministry of Sports Affairssignifying the importance which his racing career has on promoting Oman as a key destination.We have supported Ahmads international motorsport career for a long time and we are delighted to be giving him the backing he needs for this new adventure, said Khalid Al Zadjali, Director of Tourism Events at the Oman Ministry of Tourism, Expanding our involvement with him into Europe is a major development for our country as we promote Oman as a major tourism and business destination to the widest possible audience.Ahmed Al Jahdhami, Marketing Manager at the Ministry of Sports Affairs added: Ahmad is a major sports star in Oman, everyone follows his racing career closely and he is an important ambassador for us. In the last few years racing in the UK, he has helped to put Oman firmly on the map in the world of motor racing so we are delighted to be giving him our full backing for his progression into European racing.Driving a Porsche 997 GT3R in Blancpain, which is almost identical to the one he pilots in British GT, the additional track mileage will pay dividends for Ahmads experience in endurance racing and will undoubtedly boost his competitiveness in both championships as well as his profile.Winning the Pro-Am 1 title in Porsche Carrera Cup GB last year really has enabled us to make this step up, it made it possible to put together a programme in two GT championships which was always what we wanted to do to get as much seat time as possible, added Ahmad.Im very proud to fly the flag for Oman, not only in the UK in British GT but also across Europe in the Blancpain series. Well be visiting some key European destinations and that is very important to help us promote everything Oman has to offer.Ahmads maiden experience of the ARC Bratislava GT3 Porsche, the championships Pirelli P Zero tyres and of Monza itself comes today, Saturday, 13th April. On Sunday, 14th April, qualifying will begin at 10.35 (local time) with the opening round of the 2013 Blancpain Endurance Series getting underway at 14.30.