Bill Nilsson (17 December 1932 – 25 August 2013) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

professional

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

racer. He competed in the

Motocross World Championship FIM Motocross World Championship is the premier championship of motocross racing, organized by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), divided into two distinct classes: MXGP and MX2. Race duration is 30 minutes plus two laps per ...

s from 1952 to 1967. Nilsson was the first 500 cc motocross world champion after winning the inaugural 1957 championship sanctioned by the

Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme The Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM; en, International Motorcycling Federation) is the global governing/sanctioning body of motorcycle racing. It represents 116 national motorcycle federations that are divided into six regiona ...

Career

Nilsson was born in

Hallstavik Hallstavik is a locality situated in Norrtälje Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 4,476 inhabitants in 2010. The town is famous for its papermill and the Speedway team Rospiggarna. The modern Hallstavik An established project organ ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. In the 1955 European motocross championship, Nilsson finished in second place, one point behind his BSA teammate

John Draper John Thomas Draper (born March 11, 1943), also known as Captain Crunch, Crunch, or Crunchman (after the Cap'n Crunch breakfast cereal mascot), is an American computer programmer and former phreaking, phone phreak. He is a widely known figure wi ...

. Nilsson converted an AJS 7R

road racing Road racing is a form of motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held either on a closed circuit or on a street circuit utilizing temporarily closed public roads. Originally, road races were held almost entirely on publ ...

machine into a motocross bike and rode it to win the inaugural F.I.M. 500 cc

held in

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th y ...

. Nilsson finished second to

René Baeten René Baeten (10 June 1927, in Herentals – 5 June 1960, in Stekene) was a Belgian professional motocross racer. He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1947 to 1960. Baeten is notable for winning the 1958 500cc Motocross World C ...

in the 1958 world championship and second to

Sten Lundin Sten Lundin (20 November 1931 – 3 June 2016) was a Swedish professional motocross racer. He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1955 to 1966. Motocross career Lundin won the F.I.M. 500cc motocross world championship in 1959 ridi ...

in the

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

world championship before repeating as 500cc motocross world champion in

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

riding a Husqvarna. In 1955, 1958 and 1961, he was a member of the Swedish teams that won the

Motocross des Nations The Motocross des Nations (in French) is an annual team motocross race, where riders representing their country meet at what is billed as the "Olympics of Motocross". The event has been staged since 1947, where the team of Bill Nicholson, Fred Rist ...

References

External links

Bill Nilsson interview
2013 deaths 1932 births People from Norrtälje Municipality Swedish motocross riders Enduro riders Sportspeople from Stockholm County {{Sweden-motorcycle-racing-bio-stub