Three-time Dakar Rally winner Hubert Auriol dies at 68

Paris, January 11: Hubert Auriol, the first competitor to win the Dakar Rally on a motorbike and in a car, has died. He was 68.

The Dakar Rally announced that Auriol died on Sunday (January 9). It did not specify a cause but the Frenchman had battled heart disease for many years.

The charismatic Auriol won the race, which was then called the Paris-Dakar Rally, on a motorbike in 1981 and '83 and then in a car in 1992. Auriol later became director of the race, a position he held for nearly a decade.

In recent years, he had worked as a Paris-based auto racing consultant.

"He inspired generations of riders and drivers and has been an integral part of the rally throughout its history," the Dakar Rally said.

A tribute to Hubert Auriol, winner of the Dakar in 1981, 1983 🏍 and 1992 🚗 and Event Director from 1995 to 2003.https://t.co/6lVhy5LLQf pic.twitter.com/lfjb9fot3l

— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 10, 2021

Only 3 people have won the Dakar on both a bike and in a car; Hubert Auriol, Stéphane Peterhansel and Nani Roma

Ils ne sont que 3 à avoir remporté le Dakar en moto et en auto : Hubert Auriol, Stéphane Peterhansel, Nani Roma. pic.twitter.com/sKzmy4yyHA

— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 10, 2021