Olivier Jacque (born 29 August 1973 in Villerupt, France) is a French former professional Grand Prix

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

road racer.

Career

He was second in the 250cc European Championship in 1994, before moving on to the 250cc World Championship. He achieved a top ten finish in the points standings every year he competed. In

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he had a season-long battle for the championship with Tech3 teammate Shinya Nakano and

Daijiro Kato was a Japanese Grand Prix motorcycle road racer, the 2001 250cc world champion, and the 2000 and 2002 Suzuka 8 Hours winner. He died as a result of injuries sustained after a crash during the 2003 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit ...

, ultimately winning the 250cc Motorcycle World Champion on a Yamaha YZR250. For 2001, he moved up to the 500cc class with the Tech3 team. He spent three years with Tech3, before starting 2004 without a ride. He made one appearance on a Moriwaki bike, but again was without a ride as 2005 started. He stepped in for the injured Alex Hofmann in China and stunned the series regulars by finishing second to

Valentino Rossi Valentino Rossi (; ; born 16 February 1979) is an Italian former professional motorcycle road racer and nine-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion. Nicknamed ''The Doctor'', he is widely considered to be one of the greatest motorcyc ...

on the factory Kawasaki. He was then permanently hired by Kawasaki as an occasional extra race rider. He did not race for them in 2006, but was chosen for 2007 alongside countryman Randy de Puniet, replacing Nakano.

Sete Gibernau Manuel "Sete" Gibernau Bultó (born 15 December 1972) is a Spanish former professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer who is a 9-time 500cc/MotoGP race winner and a two-time overall runner-up in and . His racing career spans three different ...

was later revealed to have rejected the ride before Jacque was offered it. However, the season was a disaster. At

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he triggered a four-bike collision, missing his braking point into a corner on lap 1 and hitting

Colin Edwards Colin Edwards II (born February 27, 1974), nicknamed the "Texas Tornado", is an American former professional motorcycle racer who retired half-way through the 2014 season, but continues in the sport as a factory test rider. He is a two-time W ...

, with Dani Pedrosa and

Chris Vermeulen Chris Vermeulen (born 19 June 1982) is a retired Australian motorcycle racer who last competed in the World Superbike Championship for the works Kawasaki team, perhaps best-known for winning the 2007 French Grand Prix in MotoGP. Vermeulen was b ...

also getting caught up. In the next round in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

he crashed in practice, gashing his arm severely enough to be unable to race there or at Le Mans. He again crashed in practice at

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, missing this race too. Following the series of injuries, Jacque announced his retirement from MotoGP in June 2007. He remains as development rider and technical advisor for

Kawasaki Racing Team Kawasaki Motors Racing was the European subsidiary of Kawasaki Heavy Industries, located in the Netherlands. It was responsible for managing the racing activities of the MotoGP team. The subsidiary was established in 2007 as a result of the Japan ...

Commitment

Olivier Jacque is today a member of the ‘Champions for Peace’ club, a group of 54 famous elite athletes committed to serving peace in the world through sport, created by

Peace and Sport Peace and Sport, also known as "L’Organisation pour la Paix par le Sport" is a neutral and independent organization based in the Principality of Monaco and under the patronage of Prince Albert II of Monaco. Peace and Sport work in areas acros ...

, a

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

-based international organization.Peace and Sport
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Career statistics

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

Races by year

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

External links

* *
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacque, Olivier 1973 births Living people Sportspeople from Meurthe-et-Moselle French motorcycle racers Kawasaki Motors Racing MotoGP riders 250cc World Championship riders 500cc World Championship riders Knights of the Ordre national du Mérite Tech3 MotoGP riders MotoGP World Championship riders 250cc World Riders' Champions