Jarno Saarinen

Jarno Karl Keimo Saarinen (11 December 1945 – 20 May 1973) was a Finnish professional Motorcycle racer. He competed in the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championships from 1968 to 1971 as Yamaha privateer, before receiving the Yamaha factory's full support in 1972 and 1973. Saarinen's death led to increased demands for better safety conditions for motorcycle racers competing in the world championships.

Motorcycle racing career Saarinen was born and raised in Turku, South-West Finland. At the age of 15, he worked as apprentice and test-rider for Tunturi-Puch, motorcycle factory in Turku where mopeds and motorcycles were assembled under licence from the Austrian Puch manufacturer. Saarinen was also an accomplished motorcycle speedway racer. In 1969, he won the 125cc and 250cc Finnish motorcycle road racing national championships while acting as his own mechanic. Saarinen rode at the Ontario Champion Sparkplugs Classic in 1972, aboard a privately entered ex-works Al Godin Yamaha 350cc. Saarinen was also noted for the peculiar way in which he angled his handlebars in an almost vertical position. He finished the season in fourth place despite missing the final three rounds of the championship to complete his education by graduating as an engineer from the Turku Technical Institute.

Saarinen's success didn't go unnoticed as the Yamaha factory contracted him to ride their 350cc factory YZ634 motorcycles for the season. Saarinen was also riding a 250cc Yamaha TD3 production racer supplied by the Finnish Yamaha Importer, Arwidson Oy. The 250cc World Championship began with four different race-winners, (Hideo Kanaya, Phil Read, Börje Jansson, and Renzo Pasolini), however Saarinen led Pasolini in the championship points race due to his consistent results. Saarinen rewarded Yamaha's faith in him by winning four of the last six Grand Prix races to clinch the 250cc World Championship, after a season-long battle with Renzo Pasolini and Rod Gould.

At the end of the season, Saarinen was contacted by the Benelli factory about the possibility of riding 350cc and 500cc Benellis in the 1973 world championships. The Kawasaki team fielded a total of six factory riders aboard its potent 750cc Kawasaki H2R, including former Daytona winner Gary Nixon and Yvon Duhamel, while the Suzuki team had four riders, with New Zealand Champion Geoff Perry and Don Emde as its top riders aboard the Suzuki TR750.

Saarinen returned to Europe where, against an impressive field of competitors, he claimed a victory at the prestigious Imola 200 round of the inaugural Formula 750 European championship in 1973, once again defeating competitors on larger motorcycles with the TZ 350.

Saarinen jumped to an early lead in the world championships by scoring a double victory at the season-opening French Grand Prix. Most auto racers believed steel barriers would improve safety for auto racers and spectators, but they had the opposite effect for motorcyclists.

On the first lap of the 250cc race, tragedy struck when the second-placed rider, Renzo Pasolini's motorcycle lurched sideways and crashed into the guardrail, killing him instantly. The original cause of the crash was attributed to a thin layer of motor oil left on the track during the 350cc race when Walter Villa's Benelli began smoking and leaking oil on the penultimate lap. The Yamaha factory went further by withdrawing from racing for the rest of the year to honor Saarinen's memory.

The situation reached a breaking point in 1979 when, the reigning 500cc world champion Kenny Roberts and journalist Barry Coleman attempted to break the FIM hegemony by organizing many of the top racers to begin the process of establishing a rival motorcycle championship called the World Series. Although the competing series failed to take off due to difficulties in securing enough venues, it forced the FIM to take the riders' demands seriously and make changes regarding their safety. The name Jarno became very popular in Italy in the 1970s, one well-known bearer being former Formula-1 driver Jarno Trulli. In August 2016, a bronze statue of Saarinen was unveiled in the park, and in July 2017, a duplicate of the statue was also revealed at Turku's Aurajoki Beach in Barker Park. Saarinen remains the only Finn to have won a motorcycle road racing world championship, winning 15 Grands Prix during his career. Saarinen was also a six time Finnish road racing national champion.

Motorcycle Grand Prix results

Source:

Position 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Points 15 12 10 8 6 5 4 3 2 1

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