Rallying: Lartigue's Dakar win

Pierre Lartigue stayed cool in the African heat to win his second Dakar title when the rally ended in the Senegalese capital yesterday.

Lartigue, the defending champion, drove his Citroen cautiously in the final, 380-kilometre haul from Tambacounda to Dakar to end the event with a comfortable overall lead of 3hr 24min 53sec over his French compatriot, Bruno Saby, according to provisionalresults.

The Mitsubishi driver Saby, who won the race two years ago, won the last stage with Lartigue, who had been firmly in command since the eighth stage six days ago, content to finish in fourth place.

Victory in the motorcycle section also went to a Frenchman, Stephane Peterhansel. He completed the race in style by taking the last stage on his Yamaha for his fourth Dakar success.

The 10,000-km race began on 1 January in Granada, Spain.