The Yousef
12-05-2005, 05:58 PM
God Speed Richard.... :(
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Former world rally champion Richard Burns has died after a long illness, a statement issued on behalf of his family said on Saturday.
The Briton, who was 34, died on Friday evening of a brain tumor with his partner, family and close friends at his bedside. He had been in a coma for some days.
Burns became the only English driver to win the world championship, drivnig for Subaru in 2001.
He was diagnosed with the tumor while with Peugeot in 2003 after blacking out at the wheel on his way to the British Rally in Wales.
He had been due to return to Subaru in 2004 but the illness forced him to withdraw from that season.
The Briton, overall runner-up in 1999 and 2000 and winner of 10 rounds of the world rally championship, had a course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy last year and in April this year underwent brain surgery.
"From the outset, Richard knew that the odds were heavily against him and yet he fought his illness with bravery and good humor," said the statement.
"Having undergone both chemotherapy and radiotherapy, he was able to leave hospital in summer 2004. For a while his health showed signs of improvement but then after six months it once again began to decline.
"Determined not to give up, he opted for surgery earlier this year. This alleviated some of the symptoms of his illness and enabled him to remain active," the statement added.
"At Castle Combe in August he attended a parade of the rally cars that he drove throughout his career and was touched by the warmth of the reception he received.
"However there was to be no miracle and in recent days he lapsed into a coma."
He died on the fourth anniversary of his championship win.
Great driver
"You don't become a world champion without being a great, great driver," world rally supremo David Richards, whose Prodrive company also runs the Subaru team, told Reuters.
"He will stand out amongst them as one of the icons of the sport.
"We were very confident (in 2003) of him coming back to us and winning another title."
Richards said he had received emails from all over the world, including several from Kenya where Burns won his first world championship rally with Mitsubishi in 1998, paying tribute to the driver.
"It's easy to think of him just as an English star but remember that he won events all around the world and he had an extraordinary following," he said.
"He stood out, tall, looked slightly different with his gingery hair from the rest of the crowd and I suppose was very recognisable.
"He was the first English world champion and he did it in great style as well, he was very professional in the way he went about it," Richards added.
McRae tribute
The first Briton to win the world rally championship, Colin McRae said he would always remember Burns as a fierce competitor.
"Richard was a friend and at the same time a very fierce rival," McRae said in a statement.
"We had many great battles together, notably the 2001 Rally GB when he took the championship.
"I have seen Richard on a number of occasions during the past two years and the greatest battle he has put up was against his illness.
"Richard was a true character in the world of rallying and will be sadly missed as a competitor and a friend to many people.
"My thoughts are with Richard, Zoe (his partner), his family and all his close friends that have supported him during the last two years."
Copyright 2005 Reuters (http://www.cnn.com/interactive_legal.html#Reuters). All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Former world rally champion Richard Burns has died after a long illness, a statement issued on behalf of his family said on Saturday.
The Briton, who was 34, died on Friday evening of a brain tumor with his partner, family and close friends at his bedside. He had been in a coma for some days.
Burns became the only English driver to win the world championship, drivnig for Subaru in 2001.
He was diagnosed with the tumor while with Peugeot in 2003 after blacking out at the wheel on his way to the British Rally in Wales.
He had been due to return to Subaru in 2004 but the illness forced him to withdraw from that season.
The Briton, overall runner-up in 1999 and 2000 and winner of 10 rounds of the world rally championship, had a course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy last year and in April this year underwent brain surgery.
"From the outset, Richard knew that the odds were heavily against him and yet he fought his illness with bravery and good humor," said the statement.
"Having undergone both chemotherapy and radiotherapy, he was able to leave hospital in summer 2004. For a while his health showed signs of improvement but then after six months it once again began to decline.
"Determined not to give up, he opted for surgery earlier this year. This alleviated some of the symptoms of his illness and enabled him to remain active," the statement added.
"At Castle Combe in August he attended a parade of the rally cars that he drove throughout his career and was touched by the warmth of the reception he received.
"However there was to be no miracle and in recent days he lapsed into a coma."
He died on the fourth anniversary of his championship win.
Great driver
"You don't become a world champion without being a great, great driver," world rally supremo David Richards, whose Prodrive company also runs the Subaru team, told Reuters.
"He will stand out amongst them as one of the icons of the sport.
"We were very confident (in 2003) of him coming back to us and winning another title."
Richards said he had received emails from all over the world, including several from Kenya where Burns won his first world championship rally with Mitsubishi in 1998, paying tribute to the driver.
"It's easy to think of him just as an English star but remember that he won events all around the world and he had an extraordinary following," he said.
"He stood out, tall, looked slightly different with his gingery hair from the rest of the crowd and I suppose was very recognisable.
"He was the first English world champion and he did it in great style as well, he was very professional in the way he went about it," Richards added.
McRae tribute
The first Briton to win the world rally championship, Colin McRae said he would always remember Burns as a fierce competitor.
"Richard was a friend and at the same time a very fierce rival," McRae said in a statement.
"We had many great battles together, notably the 2001 Rally GB when he took the championship.
"I have seen Richard on a number of occasions during the past two years and the greatest battle he has put up was against his illness.
"Richard was a true character in the world of rallying and will be sadly missed as a competitor and a friend to many people.
"My thoughts are with Richard, Zoe (his partner), his family and all his close friends that have supported him during the last two years."
Copyright 2005 Reuters (http://www.cnn.com/interactive_legal.html#Reuters). All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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