IN
THE
WIND
P22
MARC COMA ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT
F
ive-time Dakar Rally Cham-
pion Marc Coma made a
surprising statement last week,
announcing his retirement from
racing. The Factory KTM rider
also announced that he has ac-
cepted a job with the Dakar Rally
itself, and will be assisting Eti-
enne Lavigne as sport director of
the event.
"I am retiring because I
believe that it is the right time,"
read a statement on Coma's
Facebook fan page. "After 12
Dakars, five wins and six [FIM
Cross-Country Rallies] World
Championships, I have to be
honest with myself and with
all the people who have sup-
ported me all these years. To my
sponsors, and especially KTM,
where I've always felt at home—
thank you. As a new sport
director of Dakar I will have the
chance to give back all the en-
ergy that somehow the rally has
given me. Thank you all for your
support."
The news also came from a
statement on the Dakar Rally
website (Dakar.com), which
stated that Coma will be starting
his new role immediately.
"The Spaniard will be devot-
ing his passion for the Dakar to
helping the organizers, starting
this week," the release stated.
"He will be spending part of
July carrying out reconnoitering
[scouting] for the 2016 edition."
Coma's new role within the
Dakar organization came from
Lavigne, himself, who com-
mented that it didn't take long for
Coma to make up his mind and
accept the role.
"It was the first choice that came
to my mind," Lagivne said, "be-
cause we both share the same
passion for the Dakar. I know
that when he commits to some-
Red Bull KTM's
factory rally
superstar Marc
Coma recently
accepted a new role:
sport director of the
Dakar Rally.
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
RALLYZONE
BAUER/BARNI
KTM
IMAGES
