LA RIOJA, Argentina: France’s David Fretigne of Yamaha won the second stage of the motorcycling category on Sunday at the Dakar Rally, a 294 km timed stage from Cordoba to La Rioja.
Compatriot David Casteu of Sherco retained the overall race lead after coming in second on the day 43 seconds adrift.
Spaniard Marc Coma of KTM was third on the day 1min 8sec behind Fretigne to go second overall ahead of French teammate Cyril Despres.
Fretigne goes fourth in the overall standings 2min 14sec off the pace.
Crash driver pulls out
Meanwhile, Germany’s Mirco Schultis and Swiss teammate Ulrich Leardi, whose car accidentally ploughed into a group of Dakar Rally spectators, killing a female fan, didn’t start Sunday’s second stage.
The duo’s 4x4 vehicle came off the track and smashed into the spectators who are believed to have strayed from a designated safe-viewing area near the town of Rio Cuarto, around 800km from Buenos Aires on Saturday.
Sonia Natalia Gallardo, 28, who suffered serious head, pelvic and stomach injuries in the incident, died in a Cordoba hospital while four others were hurt.
Over 50 people are believed to have been killed in the grueling race since its inception in 1979. Three died in 2009 when the event was switched to South America from its traditional African home.
Schultis and Leardi smashed into a group of fans who “were in a non-authorized sector, a private area,” said Julio Cesar Berrocal, the Cordoba police chief. “Three vehicles came around a corner and two of them tried to get round. But the dust cloud kicked up by them prevented the third (Schultis and Leardi’s 4x4) from seeing clearly and they came off the track.” Police interviewed Schultis after the accident.
The latest death will raise more questions over security in the race, widely regarded as the world’s most dangerous motorsports event.
After the three deaths in 2009, which involved French motorcyclist Pascal Terry and two men in a support lorry, extra measures were introduced for 2010.
Five ‘public zones’ were set-up along the route of the first stage, which were planned to provide a safe and secure viewing area for spectators.
In all, there are 57 such areas set aside on the event’s 14 stages.
“The organizers and local authorities appeal once again to the people to show the greatest care and respect the public zones,” said a race source.
BUENOS AIRES: One woman died and two other spectators were seriously injured when German driver Mirco Schultis lost control and drove into a crowd along the first stage of the Dakar Rally Saturday in Argentina.
The dead spectator was Sonia Gallardo, 28, doctor Norberto Brusa said in front of television cameras at a hospital in Cordoba, Argentina. Her heart stopped twice during a helicopter flight from the accident scene, and she died of head and other injuries.
A 24-year-old man was undergoing surgery for injuries sustained in the mishap, and a boy was taken to a children’s hospital for treatment. Two other spectators suffered minor injuries.
Argentine media reports said that Schultis lost control of his car on a curve and careened into a group of dozens of people watching from the edge of the unfenced racecourse.
Later, Schultis reportedly quit the race, which began in earnest with Saturday’s first stage from Colon to Cordoba, after a ceremonial drive on Friday from Buenos Aires by the 362 competitors driving in four race divisions: 134 cars, 52 trucks, 151 bikes and 25 quads.
The 14-stage, 9,000-kilometer event through Argentina and Chile, considered the toughest road race in the world, is slated to conclude on January 17 in Buenos Aires. It is the 32nd Dakar Rally.
Televised images showed Schultis in apparent shock shortly after the accident. Witnesses said that he frantically tried to aid the victims and seemed to be deeply shaken.
A spokesman for rally organizers said the accident took place at a spot where spectators were not permitted. Schultis was not disqualified.
Local media said that the victims were watching the race from their own property.
In the car category, Juan “Nani” Roma of Spain, who won the Dakar motorcycle division in 2004, finished first in Saturday’s stage at the wheel of a BMW X3 for the German X-Raid team, 2 minutes and seven seconds ahead of his closest pursuer.
David Casteu of France won the motorcycle stage riding his Sherco, just three seconds ahead of countryman Cyril Despres.
The first stage was shorted to 199 kilometers, due to flooding that made 52 km of the course impassable.
