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Jean Vuarnet (18 January 1933 – 1 January 2017) was an alpine ski racer from France. An
He was a skiing innovator. He honed his revolutionary aerodynamic "egg position" (French: "dite de l'œuf") now known as The Tuck - a lower stance in which he squatted down with knees bent, arms outstretched and fists clasped together, in a bid to increase his speed. He also was the first to race on metal skis (''skis métalliques Rossignol''), on which he won the
International Skiing History Association
– Jean Vuarnet
Vuarnet.com
– Jean Vuarnet
You Tube
– Jean Vuarnet: Tuck position (1961) – ' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vuarnet, Jean 1933 births 2017 deaths French male alpine skiers Alpine skiers at the 1960 Winter Olympics Olympic alpine skiers of France Olympic gold medalists for France Olympic medalists in alpine skiing Medalists at the 1960 Winter Olympics
Olympic
Olympic or Olympics may refer to
Sports
Competitions
* Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896
** Summer Olympic Games
** Winter Olympic Games
* Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
gold medalist, he was born in Le Bardo
Le Bardo ( ar, الباردو ' also Bārdaw, Bardaw, and Bardois) is a Tunisian city west of Tunis. As of 2004, the population is 73,953.
Built by the Hafsid dynasty in the 14th century, the name Bardo comes from the Spanish word "prado" meanin ...
, Tunisia
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, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
.
Career
The high point of Vuarnet's racing career came at age 27 at the1960 Winter Olympics
The 1960 Winter Olympics (officially the VIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Squaw Valley 1960) were a winter multi-sport event held from February 18 to 28, 1960, at the Squaw Valley Resort (now known as Palisades Tahoe) in Squaw Vall ...
in Squaw Valley, where he won the gold medal in the downhill
Downhill may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Downhill'' (1927 film), a British film by Alfred Hitchcock
* ''Downhill'' (2014 film), a British comedy directed by James Rouse
* ''Downhill'' (2016 film), a Chilean thriller directed by Patrici ...
. Previously, he had won bronze in the same event at the World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
in 1958
Events
January
* January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being.
* January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed.
* January 4
** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...
at Bad Gastein
Bad Gastein (; formerly ''Badgastein''; Southern Bavarian: ''Bod Goschdei'') is a spa town in the district of St. Johann im Pongau District, St. Johann im Pongau, in the Austrian state of Salzburg (state), Salzburg. Picturesquely situated in a hig ...
.
From 1957 to 1959, Vuarnet achieved seven titles as a French skiing champion: twice in the downhill (1958, 1959), slalom (1957, 1958) and alpine combined, and in the giant slalom (1957). He had placed third in the slalom and the alpine combined in the "Kandahar" at Sestriere
Sestriere (/se'strjɛre/) ( oc, Sestrieras, pms, Ël Sestrier, french: Sestrières) is a ski resort in Piedmont, Italy, a ''comune'' (municipality) of the Metropolitan City of Turin. It is situated in Val Susa, from the French border. Its name ...
in 1956. He was not selected for the Olympic team in 1956
Events
January
* January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan.
* January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim ...
.
He was a skiing innovator. He honed his revolutionary aerodynamic "egg position" (French: "dite de l'œuf") now known as The Tuck - a lower stance in which he squatted down with knees bent, arms outstretched and fists clasped together, in a bid to increase his speed. He also was the first to race on metal skis (''skis métalliques Rossignol''), on which he won the downhill
Downhill may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Downhill'' (1927 film), a British film by Alfred Hitchcock
* ''Downhill'' (2014 film), a British comedy directed by James Rouse
* ''Downhill'' (2016 film), a Chilean thriller directed by Patrici ...
at the 1960 Winter Olympics. The tenth racer on the course, he won by a full half-second.
After retiring from active competition, Vuarnet became head of the Italian alpine ski team from 1968 to 1972, and vice-president of the French skiing association, a role in which he served from 1972 to 1974.
Business
In the early 1960s, Vuarnet was asked by his hometown ofMorzine
Morzine (; frp, Morzena) is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of south-eastern France.
A traditional market town in the heart of the Portes du Soleil, Morzine is dominated by chalets spread across a rive ...
to help develop the skiing area around the town. He did so by creating the purpose-build resort of Avoriaz, together with a group of young architects. Around Avoriaz he developed a new area for alpine skiing, later linked to other areas in France and Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
known as The Portes du Soleil
Les Portes du Soleil (literally "The Doors of the Sun") is a major skisports destination in the Alps, encompassing thirteen resorts between Mont Blanc in France and Lake Geneva in Switzerland. With more than 650 km of marked pistes (claimed ...
.
Vuarnet also gave his name to the exclusive Vuarnet
Vuarnet () is a brand of sunglasses that is owned by French manufacturer Sporoptic Pouilloux S.A. The sunglasses were developed from the invention of the Skilynx lens in 1957 by French opticians Roger Pouilloux and Joseph Hatchiguian.
The sunglass ...
sunglasses in 1961, now owned by a U.K. private equity group, Neo Investment Partners.
Personal
In 1958, he marriedEdith Bonlieu
Marie Edith Jeanne Bonlieu (18 April 1934 – 23 December 1995) was a French alpine skier. She competed in the women's downhill at the 1956 Winter Olympics. She was a member of the Order of the Solar Temple and took her own life in a mass s ...
, a three-time French women's ski champion and sister of François Bonlieu
François Pierre Philippe Bonlieu (21 March 1937 – 18 August 1973) was a French Alpine skiing, alpine skier.
Born at Juvincourt-et-Damary, Aisne, Bonlieu debuted for the French alpine skiing national team when he was 15 years old. From 19 ...
.
His wife Edith and youngest son Patrick were among the members of the Order of the Solar Temple
The Order of the Solar Temple (french: Ordre du Temple solaire, OTS) and the International Chivalric Organization of the Solar Tradition, or simply The Solar Temple, is a cult and religious sect that claims to be based upon the ideals of the K ...
cult who committed suicide in 1995. He married his second wife Christiane in 1999; she died of a heart attack in 2012.
After a stroke
A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...
, Vuarnet died at age 83 in 2017 at Sallanches
Sallanches (; frp, Salenches) is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department of France. Located close to the Mont Blanc massif, many visitors pass through the town en route to well-known alpine resorts such as Chamonix, Megève and Saint-Gervais-le ...
, Haute-Savoie
Haute-Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè d'Amont'' or ''Hiôta-Savouè''; en, Upper Savoy) or '; it, Alta Savoia. is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its prefecture is ...
.
References
External links
*International Skiing History Association
– Jean Vuarnet
Vuarnet.com
– Jean Vuarnet
You Tube
– Jean Vuarnet: Tuck position (1961) – ' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vuarnet, Jean 1933 births 2017 deaths French male alpine skiers Alpine skiers at the 1960 Winter Olympics Olympic alpine skiers of France Olympic gold medalists for France Olympic medalists in alpine skiing Medalists at the 1960 Winter Olympics