10 January,2015 06:16 AM IST | | AFP
Polish motorbike rider Michal Hernik's death on the Dakar Rally was due to hyperthermia and dehydration, early tests revealed on Thursday
RIP, Michal: A file picture of Poland's Michal Hernik of KTM just before the 2015 Dakar Rally in Buenos Aires. Hernik was found dead on January 6 during Stage 3, and showed no signs of an accident. Pic/AFP.
Argentina: Polish motorbike rider Michal Hernik's death on the Dakar Rally was due to hyperthermia and dehydration, early tests revealed on Thursday.
RIP, Michal: A file picture of Poland's Michal Hernik of KTM just before the 2015 Dakar Rally in Buenos Aires. Hernik was found dead on January 6 during Stage 3, and showed no signs of an accident. Pic/AFP.
The 39-year-old's body was found on Tuesday 300 metres from the desert track without his helmet and with no apparent injury and no damage to his motorbike that would indicate an accident.
Organisers sent a helicopter to look for Hernik after he failed to arrive at the finish line of Tuesday's stage between the Argentinian towns of Villa Carlos Paz and Chilecito. His satellite tracker had stopped sending signals. The Pole was taking part in the Dakar Rally for the first time. His was the fifth death since the rally was moved to South America in 2009 over security concerns in the Sahara region and the 24th since the race began in 1979.
