In the days when the Dakar is being raced, the news of Hubert Auriol's death arrives.
The Frenchman (he was born in Addis Ababa and was nicknamed the African), was 68 years old and was the first rider capable of winning the African marathon both in motorcycles (1981 and 1983) and in cars (1992). equaled by Stephane Peterhansel and Nani Roma - and then he was the organizer of the race itself.
Sick for some time, Auriol had been hospitalized for days in intensive care after testing positive for Covid.
Auriol's first passion was motorcycles. Riding the BMW he won the Paris-Dakar twice and came close to winning two years later over Cagiva. Just on the saddle of the Italian bike, in 1987 he was forced to retire at the last stage while he was in the lead due to the fracture of both ankles, still managing to finish the stage despite the excruciating pain from the accident. An episode that has remained engraved in the history of the race. He switched to cars and in 1992 he won with the Mitsubishi.
From 1995 to 2004 he was chosen as race director by the organizer ASO.