Olivier Jacque

Who is Olivier Jacque?

Olivier Jacque is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.

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 2000 he had a season-long battle for the championship with Tech 3 team-mate Shinya Nakano and Daijiro Kato, ultimately winning the 250cc Motorcycle World Champion on a Yamaha YZR250.

For 2001, he moved up to the 500 cc class with the Tech 3 team. He spent three years in them, before starting 2004 without a ride. He made one appearance on a Moriwaki bike, but again was rideless as 2005 started. He stepped in for the injured Alex Hofmann in China and stunned the series regulars by finishing 2nd 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, ironically 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 he 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.