From our special correspondent in Saudi Arabia,
To discover
TV tonight: our selection of the day
Noisy desert… Oxymoron?
Not at the 2024 Dakar!
The electric motors and generators will still be running smoothly until Friday, the last day of racing.
It must be said that for more than two weeks, the sandy terrain of Saudi Arabia has been transforming day by day into bivouacs of twelve hectares on average.
Living spaces where drivers, mechanics, journalists and the ASO teams, organizer of the sporting event, coexist like an anthill.
“
In total, nearly 9,000 people have been listed to take part in the system, including 2,000 competitors
,” explains Capucine Loriot, responsible for accreditations.
Nearly sixty nationalities
The particularity of the Dakar, formerly accompanied in its title by the city of Paris, is that it brings together nearly sixty nationalities.
A melting pot marked by a considerable generational gap, the youngest Argentine is barely an adult, the eldest French has just celebrated his seventy-seventh candle.
In the canteen, youthful faces and graying hair, professionals and amateurs mix to form one.
“
Everyone is in the same boat, that’s the strength of this race
,” believes Isabelle Pâtissier, the first female rally-raid world champion to be crowned in 2004. Having become an ambassador for the sporting event, she who participated in the Dakar nine times, is especially delighted to see more women involved at all levels of motor racing.
Within mechanics, driving and even management like the future Team Principal of Dacia, a new manufacturer which will join rally-raid in 2025.
Also read: “Putting competition and the sporting aspect back to the heart of the 2024 Dakar”: France Pierron’s objectives for the L’Équipe channel
This development which, according to her, encourages a united state of mind: “
We know that anything can happen very quickly, to anyone.
Faced with the elements, all competitors know when they leave in the morning, but have no idea when they will arrive in the evening
.”
A fair analysis if the twists and turns of this 46th edition are to be believed.
The title holders, among the big favorites, Nasser Al-Attiyah and Matthieu Baumel gave up two days from the end.
A premature finish line due to a succession of mechanical problems.
Before the big departure from Al-Ula, fourteen days ago, the French co-pilot, relatively confident, especially regretted that the general public minimized his role.
“
We always mention the name of the pilot while forgetting his partner.
People don’t seem to have any idea what’s going on in the car
,” he defended with panache.
Ironically, his words are supported a few seconds later by a comical error.
Matthieu Baumel sees the flag of the Netherlands next to his name.
"
Every year !
", he laughed nervously, scrutinizing the French banner crudely stuck on top as a correction.
Many competitors share these remarks.
François Cazalet, who wears the colors of Toyota Gazoo Racing, compares his mission to that of a sailor whose aim is to sail while avoiding obstacles.
Except that for him, the wide tracks of the Dakar are comparable to “
the apocalypse
”.
“
We don’t guide with Tom-Tom GPS devices
,” he assures us, showing the numerous digital maps grouped together on tablets placed on board.
Journeys at dawn
With more perspective, Isabelle Pâtissier explains to us that other cogs are essential to hope to triumph in the Dakar.
“
Of course, you need the best driving, the best team but the mechanics have memory, the competitors must count on the best assistance, that which allows improvements throughout the twelve stages
,” she explains.
To ensure the smooth running of departures and arrivals, the distance between which can be up to 800 kilometers, the logistics and mechanical teams pack up their luggage and tents at 4 a.m.
Then begins a journey via chartered planes then buses to take them, before ten o'clock, to the next bivouac already installed.
Far from the noise of the engines, it is the sound of keyboards and telephones that ring in the media area where journalists, videographers and communications officers regularly take refuge.
An international race obliges, nationalities also mix in the vast coverage of the event.
Thirty OB vans and just as many editors prepare the images for broadcast every day.
Four helicopters, imported from France by boat, take turns throughout the stages to broadcast these legendary shots where the sand resembles a cloud of smoke formed to the rhythm of the motorcycles, quads, cars, buggies and trucks.
Images completed by photographers installed as close as possible to the wakes dug by the wheels.
“
A risky but controlled situation.
We are used to it and know the best angles that guarantee us spectacle and safety
,” attests Amédézal, his arms full of go-pro, long lenses and a drone.
Behind the oil changes and the hundreds of tires refurbished every day, the legendary race strives to develop a welcoming image as other sporting events have done before them.
Over a few stages, a handful of lucky people or sponsors are invited to experience immersion: sleeping in the heart of the device, visiting the different manufacturers, hot air ballooning, sunset in the middle of the desert or any tourist activity that Saudi Arabia, land of hosting the race, would have to offer.
“
That's the Dakar experience
,” proudly describes Alejandro de Goycoechea, in charge of partnerships at ASO. It cannot be ruled out that the rally-raid is the subject of a series like Formula 1, the Tour de France.
“
There are discussions
,” we are whispered.
However, beyond the heritage riches, the watchword remains above all to “
put sport back at the center of competition
”.
Terms inevitably used by everyone around the bivouac.
In this continuity, the L'Équipe channel, for the first time official broadcaster in France, has pressed the mushroom button.
Since January 5, the channel 21 schedule has set up a well-oiled mechanism of four hours of daily airing to bring the rally-raid news to life, from the rankings to the behind-the-scenes of bivouac life.
A gamble paid off, since nearly 16 million viewers in total followed the sets of Messaoud Benterki and the duplexes conducted on site by France Pierron and Mylène Domange.
All supervised by the editor-in-chief in charge of live broadcasts, François-Xavier Busnel.
In total, sixty hours of airtime were dedicated to the 2024 Dakar. A cruising speed which seems to have won back a nostalgic audience and attracted curious people.
Predictions have frequently turned towards the Frenchman Sébastien Loeb, a driver defeated several times by these unforgiving natural courses.
This edition, the competitor was once again betrayed by a broken suspension and five punctures, leaving the experienced Carlos Sainz, aged 61, to touch victory.