Buenos Aires  - An autopsy showed Wednesday that the French motorcyclist who was found dead while competing in the Dakar Rally had suffered a heart attack.

Pascal Terry had been found dead during the race in Argentina, the organizers said earlier Wednesday. The body of 49-year-old Pascal Terry was found about 15 metres from his bike around 300 metres from the route used during Sunday's second stage.

The Yamaha rider had gone missing during the stage between Santa Rosa and Puerto Madryn in the province of Chubut.

He may have died Sunday or early Monday, the Molas hospital in Santa Rosa said in its autopsy report.

Argentinian media reported that misunderstandings and communication breakdowns had kept the body from being found sooner. An emergency signal sent by satellite to Paris was delivered to rescuers late. The search for Terry was later prematurely broken off due to a false report that he had arrived at the camp.

There have now been 56 fatalities at the Dakar rally since it was first held in 1979. Two competitors died during the last race, in 2007: Elmer Symons of South Africa and France's Eric Aubijoux.

The rally has been switched this year to Argentina and Chile after last year's edition in Africa was cancelled amid security concerns in Mauritania. (dpa)