A French motorcyclist was in critical condition Tuesday after being found unconscious in remote sand dunes during the Dakar Rally in western Argentina. Officials at Teodoro J. Schestakow Hospital said Sebastien Coue apparently crashed during the second stage of the rally and was exposed to temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius before he was found. His body temperature also went above 40 C (104 F), officials said. “He entered in critical condition,” hospital director Armando Dauverne said. “We don't know how long he was exposed to the sun. Right now he is in intensive care.” Holowczyc takes lead Polish driver Krzysztof Holowczyc took the overall lead in the Dakar Rally Tuesday after the third stage won by Mini-driving teammate Spaniard Nani Roma. It was not a good day for overnight leader, six-time Dakar motorcycling champion and three time car winner France's Stephane Peterhansel who suffered two punctures and came in over six minutes slower than Roma which saw him slip to fifth overall. Roma timed 2hr 26min 51sec over the 208 km drive, finishing 1min 9sec ahead of Holowczyc, while Qatar's defending champion Nasser Al-Attiyah was third in his Hummer, 1min 29sec behind. Earlier France's three-time champion Cyril Despres enjoyed a crushing victory in the 270km third stage of the motorcycling section. Despres took the overall lead in the race as his main rival KTM teammate and defending champion Marc Coma of Spain finished seventh more than 13min off the winner. Despres timed 3hr 48min 38sec to beat home Dutch rider Frans Verhoeven by 8min 37sec while Portugal's Paulo Goncalves was third another two seconds adrift. Despres, 37, holds an overall lead of 10min 12sec over Coma.
