The Race2Recovery team of injured soldiers and civilian volunteers has made history again by completing the famous Dakar race for the second year running.
This team, sponsored by Land Rover, became the first disabled team ever to finish the Dakar in 2013.
At 14:30 local time on Saturday 18 January, the Race2Recovery truck crossed the official finish line. The truck and team then made its way to the final podium in Valparaiso, Chile, arriving at 22:45 to celebrate with the crowds packed into the city centre.
The race truck’s on-board team included Corporal Daniel Whittingham, from Nottingham, a below the knee amputee after injuries sustained in an IED explosion when serving in Afghanistan. He, along with truck driver Mark Cullum, from Hereford, and co-driver Chris Ratter, from Knutsford, battled across some of the world’s toughest terrain, including the Atacama Desert and Andes mountain range, before arriving at the final check point after more than 9,100km of racing.
A total of 204 vehicles completed the 2014 Dakar, meaning just over 50% of racers across all categories were forced to withdraw.
Speaking at the finish line, Corporal Whittingham said: “I’m so proud of the team. To finish one Dakar, last year, was amazing. To finish a second consecutive Dakar is just unbelievable. The whole team pulled together and worked extremely hard and we’re really grateful for the support we’ve had from the fans, the media, our sponsors, especially Land Rover, and other teams and competitors in the event, particularly the Red Bull Desert Wings team.
