Polish motorcyclist died of dehydration
Xinhua, January 9, 2015 Adjust font size:
Polish motorcyclist Michal Hernik (KTM), who was found dead during Day 3 of the 2015 Dakar Rally Tuesday, died of dehydration, organizers said.
An autopsy was performed to determine the cause of death after Hernik, 39, was discovered lying dead near the day's route, between the Argentinean cities of San Juan and Chilecito. It was his first time competing in the rally.
A helicopter search party found his body at 4 p.m. local time (1930 GMT), only 14 km from the finish line, at km 206 of the Cuesta de Miranda roadway, in La Rioja province.
The motorcyclist had previously competed in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge in 2014 and the Morocco Rally in 2013, both of which he completed.
The racer became the fifth competitor to die since the tough annual endurance race was relocated to South America in 2009.
That year, France's Thierry Pascal died, followed by Argentina's Jorge Martinez Boero in 2012, France's Thomas Bourgin in 2013 and Belgium's Eric Palante in 2014. All were riding motorbikes.
Scores of competitors have died during the rally, as have spectators and bystanders.
The rally, which entered its fifth day Thursday in Chile, features 13 stages in all and concludes Jan. 17 in Argentina's capital Buenos Aires, after also traversing Bolivia. Endi