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Sousa claims the opening stage of the Dakar─── 09:43 Mon, 06 Jan 2014
Morgan Piek
Bloemfontein - Portugal's Carlos Sousa claimed the opening stage of the 36th Dakar Rally on, while double defending champion Stephane Peterhansel lost time after suffering a puncture.
Sousa finished the 180km special from Rosario to San Luis in 2 hours 20 minutes 36 seconds with Argentina's Orlando Terranova 11 seconds behind and Qatar's 2011 champion Nasser Al-Attiyah, in third, 47 seconds back.
France's Peterhansel, seeking a 12th overall title after six on motorcycles and five in cars, suffered a puncture and was down in sixth place, 4 minutes 21 seconds behind Sousa.
South African Leeroy Poulter ended the first stage in 9th, while Geniel De Villiers is back in 16th.
Today’s second stage is over 400km from San Luis to San Rafael in Argentina.
