Marko Hanželic
The seventh, marathon stage of this year's performance of the Dakar Endurance Rally was marked by the news of the death of one of the greatest legends of this competition. He said goodbye at the age of 69 Hubert auriol, who twice celebrated in Dakar among motorcyclists and then among motorists. He can only boast of victories between motorcyclists and motorists Stephane peterhansel in Nani Rome.
Hubert auriol was one of the icons of the early period of the Dakar Rally, when it was still taking place on African soil and his love for the African continent, where he was born (June 7, 1952 in Addis Ababa), earned him the nickname "Africa".
Particularly legendary were his duels with another Dakar legend, Cyril Neveu. Let’s just remember the end of the Paris-Dakar Rally in 1987, when he broke both his ankles in the penultimate stage. He later switched from the engine to the car and together with the co-driver Phillip Monnet z Mistubishi Pajero also won in this category.
When in 1994 it was competitive "Retired" with the Dakar, remained associated with him as race director and held that position until 2004. As his family said in a press release, he did Auriol, which was not related to the rally driver Didier Auriol, has been battling a serious illness for some time, and his death was blamed on a heart attack.
