The 2003 Dakar Rally, also known as the 2003
Telefónica-Dakar Rally, was the 25th running of the
Dakar Rally event. The rally began on 1 January 2003 at
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
in France and finished at
Sharm el-Sheikh
Sharm El Sheikh ( ar, شرم الشيخ, ), commonly abbreviated to Sharm, is an Egyptian city on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, in South Sinai Governorate, on the coastal strip along the Red Sea. Its population is approximately 53,670 ...
in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
on 19 January, with the course crossing North Africa.
Kenjiro Shinozuka
is a Japanese rally driver. Since his debut in 1967, his greatest successes have been as a works driver for Mitsubishi Motors. Behind the wheel of a Galant VR-4 he won the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship in 1988 and scored consecutive victories ...
, who won the event in 1997, suffered serious injury in an accident between
Ghat and
Sabha in
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
. Former world rally champion and four times winner of the Dakar Rally,
Ari Vatanen, returned to take part in the rally,
and won the ninth, thirteen and fifteen stages French co-driver,
Bruno Cauvy died in an accident on the tenth stage when his car went out of control and overturned in sand dunes.
Stephane Peterhansel Stephane may refer to:
* Stéphane, a French given name
* Stephane (Ancient Greece), a vestment in ancient Greece
* Stephane (Paphlagonia), a town of ancient Paphlagonia, now in Turkey
{{dab ...
took an early lead in the rally, but was forced out in the penultimate stage by mechanical problems. The rally was won for the second time in succession by Japanese driver,
Hiroshi Masuoka.
The motorcycle category was won for the third time by
Richard Sainct
Richard Sainct (14 April 1970 – 29 September 2004) was a French rally raid motorcycle rider, best known for his three victories on Dakar Rally, The Paris-Dakar rally in 1999, 2000 and 2003.
Biography
His other notable achievements include winni ...
.
Stages
* -
Miki Biasion
Massimo "Miki" Biasion (born 7 January 1958) is an Italian rally driver, two-time World Rally champion.
Career
Biasion was born in Bassano del Grappa, Veneto.
Biasion came to prominence in the early 1980s, winning both the Italian and Europea ...
set the fastest time for the stage, but was stripped of the win after incurring a ten-hour penalty for a gearbox change in parc ferme conditions.
Stage Results
Motorcycles
Cars
Trucks
* -
Vladimir Chagin's time includes a penalty of 5:30.
Final standings
Motorcycles
Cars
Trucks
References
{{Dakar Rally
Dakar Rally
D
Dakar Rally, 2003
2003 in French motorsport