Olivier Jacque

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

Career Jacque 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 2000, he had a season-long battle for the championship with Tech3 teammate Shinya Nakano and Daijiro Kato, ultimately winning the 250cc Motorcycle World Champion on a Yamaha YZR250.

For 2001, Jacque 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 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 was later revealed to have rejected the ride before Jacque was offered it.

However, the season was a disaster. At Istanbul, Jacque triggered a four-bike collision, missing his braking point into a corner on lap 1 and hitting Colin Edwards, with Dani Pedrosa and Chris Vermeulen also getting caught up. In the next round in Shanghai 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, 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.

Commitment 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, a Monaco-based international organization.

Career statistics

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

Races by year (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Class Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Pos Pts 1995 250cc Honda AUSRet MAL10 JPNRet SPA12 GER11 ITA16 NEDRet FRA9 GBR4 CZE14 BRA7 ARG4 EUR9 10th 66 1996 250cc Honda MAL4 INA8 JPN4 SPA7 ITA4 FRARet NEDRet GER2 GBR3 AUTRet CZE2 IMO2 CAT2 BRA1 AUS3 3rd 193 1997 250cc Honda MAL3 JPNDNS SPA7 ITA5 AUT1 FRARet NEDRet IMO2 GER2 BRA1 GBR4 CZE2 CAT6 INA3 AUS3 4th 201 1998 250cc Honda JPN5 MAL3 SPA3 ITARet FRA4 MADRet NEDRet GBR GER CZERet IMO5 CAT4 AUS3 ARG3 5th 112 1999 250cc Yamaha MAL4 JPNRet SPADNS FRA ITA CAT NED GBR GER8 CZE5 IMO3 VALRet AUS2 RSA3 BRA4 ARG1 7th 122 2000 250cc Yamaha RSA4 MAL2 JPN4 SPA4 FRA3 ITA2 CAT1 NED2 GBR2 GER1 CZE3 POR2 VAL2 BRARet PAC4 AUS1 1st 279 2001 500cc Yamaha JPNRet RSA16 SPADNS FRADNQ ITA CAT12 NED11 GBR9 GER6 CZE12 POR8 VAL5 PACRet AUS6 MALRet BRARet 15th 59 2002 MotoGP Yamaha JPNRet RSA6 SPA11 FRARet ITA9 CAT9 NED14 GBR5 GERRet CZE10 PORRet BRA7 PAC7 MALRet AUS8 VAL9 10th 81 2003 MotoGP Yamaha JPN15 RSA10 SPA10 FRA4 ITA10 CATRet NED5 GBRRet GER9 CZE11 POR13 BRARet PAC13 MALDNS AUS6 VALRet 12th 71 2004 MotoGP Moriwaki RSA SPA FRA ITA CAT NED BRA GER GBR CZE POR JPN11 QAT MAL AUS VALRet 24th 5 2005 MotoGP Kawasaki ESP POR CHN2 FRA11 ITA CAT NED USA GBR GERRet CZE JPN MALRet QATDNS AUS16 TUR13 VAL 17th 28 2007 MotoGP Kawasaki QAT12 SPA18 TURRet CHNDNS FRA ITA16 CATDNS GBR NED GER USA CZE RSM POR JPN AUS MAL VAL 23rd 4