At least four spectators were taken to hospital after vehicle driven by competitor Guo Meiling plowed into the crowd at the Dakar Rally on Saturday in Argentina, race organizers confirmed.
The accident in Argentina occurred 6.6 kilometers (4.1 miles) into the 11-kilometer (6.8-mile) route for the first day of the famed race, which has been held in South America since 2009. As this year’s favourites look to fill the void left by the fact that the event’s recent specialists Marc Coma and Cyril Despres have moved on to other projects (Sporting Director and Peugeot driver respectively), the short burst produced an Iberian one-two-three, led by Joan Barreda and Ruben Faria (6m27s).
The mini Guo Meiling was driving veered off the course at around 6.6km into the stage on a stretch of straight country road near Arrecifes, a small town 258km north of the Argentine capital.
A statement from organizers says the injured spectators would be taken to local hospitals.
A man and his 14-year-old son sustained the most serious injuries, the health secretary of Arrecifes in the Buenos Aires province Carlos Mondino told the Argentinean Todo Noticias channel.
“Medical assessments are ongoing”, organisers added.
In 2015, Polish motorcycle rider Michal Hernik died at the end of a stage, while the last accident involving spectators at the Dakar Rally was in 2011, when one person was killed.
Guo is the first Chinese woman to compete in the world famous rally.
“It was important to clear the prologue and avoid any mistakes on the first day”, said Loeb, driving a Peugeot 2008 DKR, having raced nearly exclusively for another French manufacturer, Citroen.
The seven-mile Prologue stage near Buenos Aires was a new addition to the Dakar for 2016, designed mainly to set the starting order for the first of the full-length stages on Sunday – although times still count towards the final result.
