For other meanings, see also the disambiguation page Auriol

Auriol

Auriol may refer to:* Auriol, the typeface* Didier Auriol , French rally driver and World Rally Champion* George Auriol, alias of Jean-Georges Huyot , French poet, songwriter, painter, graphic designer, illustrator, and type designer...

Hubert Auriol (born in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...

, June 7, 1952) is a former French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 racing driver and former director of the Paris-Dakar Rally. Auriol was the first racer to win the Dakar in both bikes and automobiles.

Auriol began competing in motocross

Motocross

Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...

 and enduro

Enduro

Enduro is a form of motorcycle sport run on courses that are predominantly off-road. Enduro consists of many different obstacles and challenges...

 events in 1973. From 1979 to 1994, he took part in the Paris-Dakar Rally, taking part in the first nine events on a bike and the remaining seven on a car. On a bike, he won the event in 1981 and 1983 on a BMW R80G/S

BMW R80G/S

The BMW R80G/S is a motorcycle manufactured in Berlin, Germany, by BMW Motorrad from 1980 to 1987. Production totalled 21,864 bikes.It was the first in the BMW GS family of specialised dual-sport bikes, of which over 500,000 have been produced....

 entered by BMW France, finishing in second in 1984. He broke both ankles on the penultimate day of the 1987 edition, while he was in the lead. He wrote a book with the French journalist Jean-Michel Caradec'h

Jean-Michel Caradec'h

Jean-Michel Caradec'h is a French journalist and writer. He is the author of several books in association with personalities of show business, sports, and civil life...

, "Paris Dakar. Une histoire d'hommes" about this story. Then Auriol switched to the car class in 1988, first racing a works Mitsubishi

Mitsubishi

The Mitsubishi Group , Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company that consists of a range of autonomous businesses which share the Mitsubishi brand, trademark and legacy...

 Pajero Proto T3

Mitsubishi Pajero

The Mitsubishi Pajero is a sport utility vehicle manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. It was named after Leopardus pajeros, the Pampas Cat which is native to the Patagonia plateau region of southern Argentina. However, since pajero is an offensive term for "wanker" in Spanish, alternative names have...

, but after losing the event to Ari Vatanen

Ari Vatanen

Ari Pieti Uolevi Vatanen is a Finnish rally driver turned politician and Member of the European Parliament 1999–2009. Vatanen won the World Rally Championship drivers' title in 1981 and the Paris Dakar Rally four times....

 in 1990, switched to the Citroën

Citroën

Citroën is a major French automobile manufacturer, part of the PSA Peugeot Citroën group.Founded in 1919 by French industrialist André-Gustave Citroën , Citroën was the first mass-production car company outside the USA and pioneered the modern concept of creating a sales and services network that...

 team, winning in 1992 with a ZX Rallye Raid

Citroën ZX

The Citroën ZX is a small family car produced by the French manufacturer Citroën between 1991 and 1998.During the 1990s, the ZX was Citroën's competitor in the class traditionally dominated in Europe by the Ford Escort and Vauxhall/Opel Astra, a market segment Citroën had moved away from when the...

, co-driven by Philippe Monnet

Philippe Monnet

Philippe Monnet is a single-handed sailor from France, born in La Clusaz.-Records:*1988: World record - solo sail on "Kriter" ....

.

In 1994, Auriol joined Dakar organizer ASO

Amaury Sport Organisation

The Amaury Sport Organisation is part of the French media group, EPA . It organises sporting events including the Tour de France and Paris–Nice professional cycle road races, and the Dakar Rally...

 and became race director of the event he won for three times, starting in the 1995 edition. He headed the event until the 2004 edition, when he was replaced by Patrick Zaniroli. Hubert Auriol currently lives in Suresnes

Suresnes

Suresnes is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. The nearest communes are Neuilly-sur-Seine, Puteaux, Rueil-Malmaison, Saint-Cloud and Boulogne-Billancourt...

 with his wife and three children. He is not related to former World Rally Champion Didier Auriol

Didier Auriol

Didier Auriol is a French rally driver.Born in Montpellier, and initially an ambulance driver, Auriol made his name as a French rally driver in the World Rally Championship throughout the 1990s. He became World Rally Champion in 1994, the first from his country to do so...

.