11 Jan 2021 / 01:18 H.
Jan 10 (Reuters) - Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel extended his Dakar lead to nearly eight minutes in Saudi Arabia on Sunday as the rally mourned the passing of former champion Hubert Auriol, the first to win on both two wheels and four.
Organisers said former race director Auriol, who triumphed on a motorcycle in 1981 and 1983 and in the car category in 1992 when the rally was held in Africa, had died after a long illness. He was 68.
Peterhansel, winner of the gruelling event a record 13 times with six of those victories on a motorcycle before switching to cars, finished the 453km seventh stage from Ha'il to Sakaka in second place.