JANUARY 13, 2005

The poor Dakar

It has not been a happy Dakar Rally this year with two competitors dying as a result of accidents in the desert. Although the rally itself has no control over the fans that follow the event, it is inevitably linked with the rally and thus the news yesterday of a road accident near Dakar which resulted in the deaths of two bikers and serious injuries for another seven only adds to the bad publicity for this year's event.

It seems that the group were fans of Belgian rider Rene Delaby, who retired from the event at the weekend, but they continued towards the finish in Dakar. The group were riding together when a truck, travelling in the opposite direction, ran into them. Two of the bikers were killed, two were seriously injured and another five suffered minor injuries. The two dead men were from the French-speaking part of Belgium, from neighboring towns in the Charleroi region.

Print News Story