Paulo Gonçalves (motorbike #8), one of the most experienced and beloved champions of the rally-raid family, passed away in a fatal accident after 276 km into stage 7’s special.
The organisers received an alert at 10:08 am and dispatched a medical helicopter that reached Paulo at 10:16 am and found him unconscious after going into cardiac arrest. Toby Price was the first rider to reach the scene of the accident. Kevin Benavides, Paulo’s former teammate, reached a few moments later. Both the riders tried to assist Paulo but all in vain.
Following resuscitation efforts in situ, the competitor was taken by helicopter to Layla Hospital, where he was sadly pronounced dead.
40-year-old Paulo Gonçalves was taking part in his 13th Dakar. He made his debut in 2006 and had finished four times in the top 10, including an impressive performance as runner-up to Marc Coma in 2015.
Paulo Gonçalves, the 2013 cross-country rallies world champion, was sitting in 46th place overall after stage 6 of the 2020 Dakar.
Our sincere condolences to his friends and family.
RIP, brother.
Source – Dakar.com
