Off the wire from AAP
Japan's former Dakar Rally champion Kenjiro Shinozuka has been put on a life support machine after suffering head and other serious injuries in a crash during Friday's eighth stage.
The 54-year-old Nissan driver will be transferred to Tunis later on Friday and then to Paris "when his condition has stabilised", organisers said.
His French co-driver Thierry Delli Zotti was in a satisfactory condition and was to be transferred with Shinozuka for a scan.
The accident occurred some 373km into the marathon 727km stage, the longest in this year's Rally, between Ghat and Sabha in Libya.
The car went out of control on a series of hill jumps in the dunes and rolled over.
"The two men were evacuated by medical helicopter towards the Rally medical centre at Sabha," organisers said.
"From there, once their condition stabilises they will be taken to Tunis by helicopter."
Shinozuka, who won the rally in 1997 and was third last year, had been in third position overall in the car section going into Thursday's stage, 51 minutes 20 seconds behind leader Stephane Peterhansel of France.
Source: AAP
Date published: Jan 10, 2003
Japan's former Dakar Rally champion Kenjiro Shinozuka has been put on a life support machine after suffering head and other serious injuries in a crash during Friday's eighth stage.
The 54-year-old Nissan driver will be transferred to Tunis later on Friday and then to Paris "when his condition has stabilised", organisers said.
His French co-driver Thierry Delli Zotti was in a satisfactory condition and was to be transferred with Shinozuka for a scan.
The accident occurred some 373km into the marathon 727km stage, the longest in this year's Rally, between Ghat and Sabha in Libya.
The car went out of control on a series of hill jumps in the dunes and rolled over.
"The two men were evacuated by medical helicopter towards the Rally medical centre at Sabha," organisers said.
"From there, once their condition stabilises they will be taken to Tunis by helicopter."
Shinozuka, who won the rally in 1997 and was third last year, had been in third position overall in the car section going into Thursday's stage, 51 minutes 20 seconds behind leader Stephane Peterhansel of France.
Source: AAP
Date published: Jan 10, 2003