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Alphand and Coma close in on Dakar win
(AFP)
Updated: 2006-01-15 14:48
France's Luc Alphand will be crowned Dakar Rally champion on Sunday but his
race to the title was overshadowed on Saturday when a second boy was killed
after a collision with a vehicle.
France's Luc
Alphand sits in his Mitsubishi after winning the 12th stage of the 28th
Dakar rally between Bamako and Labe, Guinea. Alphand has taken the lead in
the overall ranking for the car category. [AFP] |
| Alphand
will go into Sunday's final 31km stage with a 17min 53sec lead in his Mitsubishi
over South Africa's Giniel de Villiers as he looks to add this title to his 1997
world Alpine skiing crown.
But the race was mourning the death of a 14-year-old boy who was killed after
running into the path of an assistance lorry on a national road.
On Friday, a 10-year-old boy was killed as he crossed the course in Guinea
and was hit by a car.
The rally was already in shock following the death of motorbike participant
Andy Caldecott of Australia on Monday as the race passed through Mauritania.
The race has now claimed 47 lives in its 28 year history.
Despite the deaths, there was no question of the event being called off
although organisers said late Saturday that Sunday's final stage will not be
timed as a mark of respect to the dead.
"The Senegalese authorities insist that the race continues because the event
is a national event," said race director Etienne Lavigne.
"There has been no pressure applied but we have the feeling that the race is
very important for the Senegalese. There's no doubt that the final stage in
Dakar on Sunday will take place as usual."
Alphand finished in eighth place on Saturday dropping 4min 20secs to de
Villiers after a small navigational mistake.
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