Incidents
- During the first stage of the rally, 28-year-old Natalia Gallardo was killed after she and a group of spectators were involved in an incident with the Desert Warrior 4x4 of Mirco Schultis and Ulrich Leardi, which had veered off course near the town of Rio Cuarto, some 800 km (500 mi) from Buenos Aires. Four other fans were injured, two of which were transferred to Córdoba for further treatment.
- A vast number of competitors did not manage to return to the Fiambala bivouac by nightfall at the end of the third stage. Having to face the passage of the Andes on the fourth stage, the organisers decided to delay the start of the stage by 90 minutes, and shorten the stage by 40 km (25 mi).
- KTM rider Luca Manca was involved in a serious accident approximately 10 km (6.2 mi) into the sixth stage. He suffered a brain contusion in the accident, and was transferred by helicopter to Hospital del Cobre Dr. Salvador Allende Gossens in Calama, before being transferred to the neuro-surgical unit of Clínica de la Mutual de Seguridad in Santiago. This came a day after Manca had generously surrendered his rear wheel to defending champion Marc Coma when his fellow KTM rider's tyre burst.
- Stage nine was shortened by 168 km (104 mi) due to fog in the surrounding areas around the stage start at Copiapó.
Read more about this topic: 2010 Dakar Rally
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“An element of exaggeration clings to the popular judgment: great vices are made greater, great virtues greater also; interesting incidents are made more interesting, softer legends more soft.”
—Walter Bagehot (1826–1877)