Austrian far right leader, Joerg Haider, was killed in a car crash early this morning just weeks after making a major comeback in national elections last month.

Police said Haider's car skidded out of control as he tried to overtake another vehicle near the southern Austrian city of Klagenfurt. His car crashed into a concrete traffic barrier before rolling over several times. He suffered severe injuries to his head and chest and was pronounced dead in hospital a short while later. An initial investigation into the accident revealed no signs of foul play.

Haider, 58, who was governor of Carinthia province, drew international condemnation for his right wing rhetoric and staunchly anti-immigrant stance. He also caused controversy by seeming to harbour Nazi sympathies after citing the “proper labour policies” of Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich.

He was a politically active teenager and joined the far-right Freedom party in 1977. In 2000, he entered a coalition government prompting huge international protest. In recent years he sought to tone down his rhetoric and in 2005 formed the breakaway Alliance for the Future of Austria in a move towards relative moderation.

Last month he led the right wing alliance to almost 30 per cent of the vote in parliamentary elections putting them on nearly equal footing with the Social Democrats. The result means the Social Democrats could now struggle to form a stable coalition if they ignore the right.

Haider had been on his way to his hometown in the mountainous southern province for a family celebration to mark his mother’s 90th birthday when the accident occurred. His spokesman described his death as a "human tragedy” adding: "For us, it's like the end of the world."

Austrian Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer said Haider had helped shape Austria’s domestic political landscape. Haider, a passionate skier and marathon runner, was married and had two adult daughters.

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