French title holder Cyril Despres, riding a KTM, on Monday broke through the pain barrier of a recently dislocated collarbone to win the ninth stage of the Dakar Rally, which was marred by the death of Australian rival Andy Caldecott.
The car stage was won by Frenchman and defending champion Stephane Peterhansel, who equalled the record for overall stage wins of Finn Ari Vatanen with his 51st career success.
The 41-year-old Caldecott, a specialist in the desert and four-time winner of the Australian Safari from 2000 to 2003, died after crashing after 250km of the gruelling 599km stage from Nouakchott and Kiffa.
The Australian became the 23rd competitor to die in the Dakar Rally since it started 28 years ago.
As a mark of respect for the Australian, it was agreed later on that Tuesday’s 10th stage for the motorcyclists would be non-timed and a minute’s silence would be held in the morning.
Yamaha rider Eric Croquelois, who was the second motorcyclist to come upon Caldecott, said the Australian had not looked in a good state.
”He must have been going at 150kph,” said Croquelois. ”He must have hit a big bump and gone over the handlebars. He was all broken up.”
Despres — who had said on Sunday he would make his mind up on Monday whether to continue in the race — won the stage, which also saw the withdrawal of second-placed Isidre Esteve Pujol after two falls, in seven hours, 55 minutes and 48 seconds.
Despres finished 4:07 ahead of Spain’s Marc Coma (KTM) and seven minutes clear of Portugal’s Helder Rodrigues (KTM).
Coma retained the overall lead in the motorcycle section 22:47 ahead of Despres and 53:04 clear of Italian Giovanni Sala (KTM).
Peterhansel, driving a Mitsubishi, was 8:44 clear of teammate and compatriot Luc Alphand, while South Africa’s Giniel de Villiers was third in a Volkswagen 54:16 adrift.
Peterhansel, who is seeking his third win in the car section, leads Alphand, a former top-class skier, by 9:16 in the overall standings, while De Villiers can only pray that the other two suffer engine failure in the final week of the marathon event.
Peterhansel admitted that once he had seen the stricken form of Caldecott he had eased up on the speed he was going.
”When I saw his body on the course I feared the worst and I took it easy throughout the rest of the stage,” said Peterhansel, who was a six-time winner of the motorbike discipline before switching to cars.
”It is a cursed stage. It is unbelievable because at the point where he crashed there is no real difficulty, but on a motorbike the slightest mistake can be fatal. It is a sad day.”
Tuesday’s 10th stage runs from Kiffa to Kayes in Mali over 333km, including a special of 283km. — Sapa-AFP