Argentine police said a man died when the small truck he was driving collided with a car participating in the Dakar Rally yesterday.

Police said the accident took place at 6 am local time, about 10 kilometres (6 miles) from the northern Argentine town of Tinogasta. Argentine media widely carried coverage of the fatality and showed photographs of the damaged vehicles.

The accident took place when Argentine driver Eduardo Amor was still completing the 10th stage, which leading competitors finished on Wednesday. Amor was reportedly driving on a road near Tinogasta when he collided with the other vehicle.

The dead man was identified by the Argentine news agency Diario y Noticias as 42-year-old Marcelo Reales.

Nasser Al-Attiyah won yesterday's 11th stage of the Dakar Rally, moving closer to ensuring himself the overall champion when the two-week race ends on Sunday in Buenos Aires.

Defending champion Carlos Sainz, who trailed Volkswagen teammate Al-Attiyah by 18 minutes entering the stage, broke his right front suspension and lost more than an hour — and almost surely lost any chance for victory.

Al-Attiyah finished the stage 1 minute, 13 seconds ahead of Stephane Peterhansel and 4:52 up on Giniel de Villiers. Al-Attiyah leads De Villiers in the overall by 51:49