
As a group of spectators in the path of a Dakar Rally truck competitor ran to get out of the way over the weekend, one tripped and fell in the sand. The truck ran over the spectatorâs leg while its driver, who said he didnât know it happened, was later disqualified from the rally for not stopping to attend to the person.
The nearly two-week Dakar Rally can be dangerous, and even fatal, whether or not people are operating within the rules. Motorsport.com reports that during the fifth stage of the rally on Friday, a group of five spectators were watching from outside of a stageâs designated spectator areas amongst some sand dunes.
Thatâs when the truck of Kamaz driver Andrey Karginov drove into the picture, with the group standing right in his path.
Video footage from the stage shows Karginov keep bouncing over the dunes as one of the spectators appears to trip, with the huge, boxy truck running right over the personâs leg. Thereâs video footage of the whole incident, but, be advised, it shows one of the spectators being run over without any edits.
The video is shot from far away and it isnât too graphic, but as we said, be advised, it shows a dude getting run over.
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Motorsport.com reported on Saturday that event organizers said the spectator went to a nearby hospital in the Peruvian city of Arequipa with a broken femur, and that Karginov, a former Dakar trucks winner who was in third overall at the time, had been disqualified.
The disqualification was for ânot stopping to attend the injured spectator,â according to a statement by rally organizers, ending Karginovâs race halfway through the rally. Motorsport.com reports that Kamaz team boss Vladimir Chagin, a multiple-time Dakar winner, said Karginov didnât know he hit the spectator until he finished the stage, and called the penalty âvery harsh.â
From the story:
âThereâs a lot spectators on the route, and in the most difficult parts thereâs always particularly many of them, spread out in various groups,â Chagin said.
âAs he [Karginov] was driving up one of the ascents, there was a group of five spectators in the path of the truck. Four managed to clear off but one tripped in the sand and his leg was caught under the rear wheel of the truck.
âAndrey naturally didnât see this - it was an ascent and all you can see through the windshield is the sky and the top of the mountain â so he only found out about the accident upon arriving to the bivouac. [...]â
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Chagin said the team was surprised by the decision but canât protest until the race is over, so theyâre accepting it and moving on with their other teams.
Karginov did check on the spectator after his race ended, though, with the Kamaz teamâs Twitter account posting this photo of him, Chagin and team doctor Irina Zelenkova with the spectator while he recovered.
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Attending races is a great way to spend time, as this spectator obviously knows. But, especially if the race youâre attending can be particularly dangerous, try not to wander from the designated viewing areas. Theyâre designated for a reason.