American motorsport star Ken Block dies in snowmobile accident

Pro rally driver Ken Block, who competed in the Otago Rally and became an internet sensation with his daring stunts behind the wheel, died aged 55 after a snowmobile accident, his team Hoonigan Racing said.

"It's with our deepest regrets that we can confirm that Ken Block passed away in a snowmobile accident today," Hoonigan said in a statement on Instagram.

"Ken was a visionary, a pioneer and an icon. And most importantly, a father and husband. He will be incredibly missed."

The accident occurred in Utah's Wasatch County and the Sheriff's Office said that Block was riding on a steep slope when the snowmobile upended and landed on top of him.

"He was pronounced deceased at the scene from injuries sustained in the accident," they said in a statement, adding that he was riding in a group but was alone when the accident occurred.

Having begun his rallying career in 2005, Block was named Rookie of the Year in the Rally America Championship. He competed in the World Rally Championship and won several rallycross medals at the X Games.

The American also co-founded sportswear company DC Shoes and produced the Gymkhana video series, which featured him driving on dangerous tracks and obstacle courses. The series racked up millions of views on YouTube.

Block competed professionally in New Zealand multiple times, including the Otago Rally twice.

Rally New Zealand said Block would consistently refer to New Zealand’s heavily cambered gravel roads as the best in the world to his millions of fans through social media across the globe.

"He was also someone who was a genuine pleasure to have compete in our events, a truly likeable personality with an infectious enthusiasm for life as well as rallying and someone the world is certainly poorer without," Rally New Zealand chairman Paul Mallard said.

 - Additional reporting ODT