Guerlain Chicherit (born 20 May 1978 in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

) is a French

rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Demonstration (political), a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a United States school or college sporting event Spor ...

and rallycross driver, and a professional

skier Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (I ...

who was four times world champion in freeriding (1999, 2002, 2006 and 2007).

Biography

He made his professional motorsport debut in the French Rally Cup driving a

Citroën Saxo The Citroën Saxo was a supermini produced by the French manufacturer Citroën from 1996 to 2004. It was sold in Japan as the Citroën Chanson, because Honda had registered the "Saxo" name. As a badge engineered variant of the Peugeot 106 (whic ...

, and after a successful season in 2003 he became an official Citroën driver. In 2006, after winning the 2005 Dakar Challenge, he attended his first

Dakar Rally The Dakar Rally (or simply "The Dakar"; formerly known as the "Paris–Dakar Rally") is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation. Most events since the inception in 1978 were staged from Paris, France, to Dakar, Senegal ...

, driving a BMW X3, and won a stage on his way to finishing 9th in the final classification. In the

2009 Dakar Rally The 2009 Dakar Rally was the 31st running of the Dakar Rally. In addition to motorcycle, automobile, and truck categories, a separate quad (all-terrain vehicle) class was added for the first time. The race began on 3 January 2009, and took place a ...

he suffered an accident while fighting in the general classification, and finished 9th. GuerlainChicherit02

Later that year, after achieving a great series of results including a 3rd place in the

Tunisia Rally The rally of Tunisia (''Rallye de Tunisie'') is a rally-raid which was disputed each year in Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa ...

and wins on

Rally Transibérico Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Demonstration (political), a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a United States school or college sporting event Spor ...

and UAE Desert Challenge, he won the FIA Cross Country Rally World Cup with co-driver Tina Thörner. In the

2010 Dakar Rally The 2010 Dakar Rally was the 32nd running of the event. It was held in South America for the second successive time, and ran from 1 to 16 January. The Amaury Sport Organisation and the governments of Argentina and Chile agreed to a return to South ...

, Chicherit was able to get another stage win and finish 5th in the final classification with an X-Raid BMW. In the 2013 Dakar Rally, Chicherit won a stage and finished 8th overall driving an SMG buggy. In 2013, he also became the first driver to complete an unassisted backflip in a car. In March 2014 Chicherit tried to break the world record for the longest car jump in Tignes, France. He crashed spectacularly on landing (which became a viral video on YouTube), but only suffered relatively minor injuries. In August 2015 Chicherit joined JRM Racing for two events in the

FIA World Rallycross Championship The FIA World Rallycross Championship (official abbreviation is World RX) is a rallycross series organised by the FIA in conjunction with series promoter Rallycross Promoter GmbH (founded by Red Bull and KW25). From the inaugural season in 2014 ...

driving the MINI RX in the Supercar class in Loheac, France, and Franciacorta, Italy. In 2016, Chicherit again tackled the Dakar Rally, driving an X-Raid Buggy but retiring on medical grounds following a steering related issue during SS5. 2016 also saw Chicherit rejoin the FIA World Rallycross Championship, teaming up with Monster Energy athlete

Liam Doran Liam Doran (born 22 March 1987) is a British professional rallycross driver competing in the FIA World Rallycross Championship, Global RallyCross Championship, X Games, and European Rallycross Championship. He is the son of British rallyc ...

at JRM Racing for selected events in France, Barcelona and Germany. However, a non-start for Chicherit in Loheac meant he also entered the first ever event in Riga, Latvia. Chicherit announced plans to form his own team, GC Kompetition, driving a pair of

Renault Mégane The Renault Mégane () is a small family car produced by the French car manufacturer Renault for model year 1996, and was the successor to the Renault 19. The Mégane has been offered in three- and five-door hatchback, saloon, coupé, converti ...

RS RXs in the 2018

. The team got a podium in its first season through Jérôme Grosset-Janin in Holjes. 2019 saw Guerlain and GC Kompetition continue its involvement in the FIA World Rallycross Championship, growing to a 5 car team by the end of the season - with 3

RS RXs, and a pair of

Renault Clio The Renault Clio () is a supermini car ( B-segment), produced by French automobile manufacturer Renault. It was launched in 1990, and entered its fifth generation in 2019. The Clio has had substantial critical and commercial success, being con ...

RS RXs making up the new GCK Academy team. Guerlain had his strongest season yet, threatening the top of the timesheets on a regular basis and sealing his best ever finish with 4th in Canada despite suffering mechanical issues in the final. Away from sports, Chicherit is involved in property development. He has his own company, GC Kollection, which designs and builds chalets in the Alps. Guerlain has many other business ventures including GCK Energy, which won the FIA tender to power the upcoming electrification of the FIA World Rallycross Championship.

Racing record

Dakar Rally results

( key)

Complete FIA World Rallycross Championship results

( key)

Supercar/RX1/RX1e

RX2 International Series

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chicherit, Guerlain 1978 births Living people Dakar Rally drivers French male skiers French rally drivers World Rallycross Championship drivers Off-road racing drivers Citroën Racing drivers