Malysz finishes Dakar Rally 15th

Adam Malysz celebrates arriving in Santiago: photo - EPA/Ariel Marinkovic

Only 91 of the 152 cars that began the 14-stage epic across Peru and Chile crossed the final post in Santiago on Saturday.

Chairman of the Polish Automobile Association Andrzej Witkowski was one of the first to sing Malysz's praises.

“For me, and perhaps not just for me, Malysz was a revelation,” Witkowski told Polish Radio.

“After all, he only recently left the ski jumps,” he added, noting that if Malysz continues to develop his driving skills at such a rate, he'll be gunning for first place in two to three years.

Malysz himself is delighted with how the rally panned out.

“It's slowly sinking in that we finished in fifteenth position,” he revealed in an update on his official web site, malyz.pl.

“For me, it's like winning,” he added.

Malysz completed the rally with his driving partner Rafal Marton.

Meanwhile, Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel claimed his Dakar title on Saturday, winning the overall classification with Cyril Despres.

While representing Poland as a ski-jumper Malysz won four World Cup titles and four World Championships gold medals. (nh)