LIMA, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- Holland's Gerard de Rooy (No. 500) won the second stage of the 2013 Dakar Rally on Sunday in the truck racing category, aboard an Iveco.
Racing along 242 kilometers of Peru's Pisco province, De Rooy beat the competition with a time of 3:27:17, ahead of the Czech Ales Loprais (503), aboard a Tatra, and Italy's Miki Biason (507), also aboard an Iveco, who came in second and third, respectively, with a time of 3:29:33 and 3:38:12.
On Monday competitors in the four categories -- autos, motorbikes, quads (4x4s) and trucks -- will cover the Pisco-Nasca stage of the race that kicked off Saturday in the bathing resort of Chorrillos, south of Peru's capital Lima, and concludes Jan. 20 in Chile.
Some 459 vehicles are competing, including 155 autos and 75 trucks, 189 motorbikes, and 40 quads, in the 14-stage race through the rugged countrysides of Peru, Argentina and Chile.
Competitors from 53 countries are taking part in this edition of the legendary rally, reportedly the largest ever since the competition was first established in 1978. < The rally originally took place in Africa, but political turmoil there led organizers to move the event to South America in 2009, where it has taken place each year since.