STRASBOURG, France: Two spectators have been injured after the Citroen DS3 driven by Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah went off the road during the longest stage of the Rally of France on Saturday.
"The injured pair are suffering from fractures - one to an arm, the other a leg. They were brought to hospital by ambulance," press spokeswoman Francoise Despierre told AFP.
The reasons why Al-Attiyah went off the road during the 43.45km special at Pays d'Ormont in the north-eastern Alsace region are still not known, but the remainder of the special was suspended with the leading drivers having already completed the run.
Finland's Jari-Matti Latvala dropped back in his pursuit of race leader Sebastien Loeb after his Ford Fiesta skidded in the wet and went into a ditch.
The Ford Fiesta driver took 18.0sec more than Loeb to complete the run, slipping 33sec behind the Citroen driver in the overall standings.
His advantage over third-placed Citroen driver and compatriot Mikko Hirvonen is now down to 10.8sec with two stages left to run on Saturday.
Alsace native Loeb added: "We have done a good stage because we have increased our lead and we will see the gap after the stage. It's important to keep a good rhythm and that's what we try to do." (AFP)
