Rupert Hollaus (4 September 1931 – 11 September 1954) was an Austrian

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

road racer who competed for the NSU factory racing team. He is the only

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

to win a

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 ...

World Championship 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, ...

, and the first racer to do so posthumously. __TOC__

Motorcycle racing career

Hollaus was born in

Traisen, Austria Traisen (, pronunciation in local German dialect ) is a town in the district of Lilienfeld in the Austrian state of Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the n ...

. He began his Grand Prix racing career in the

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...

season. In the

1954 Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...

season, he dominated the 125cc class by winning the first four Grands Prix. His victory at the

1954 Isle of Man TT The 1954 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy was the second race in the 1954 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season and proved highly controversial for TT Course and race changes. The 1954 Junior TT was the first race where the official race distance was re ...

was notable because he was one of only seven riders to have won an

Isle of Man TT The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event run on the Isle of Man in May/June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907. The event is often called one of the most dangerous racing events in the world ...

race in their first attempt. Due to the circuit's 37.7 mile length, it usually takes competitors two or three attempts before they learn its nuances. Later that same year, Hollaus was killed during practice for the

Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix ( it, Gran Premio d'Italia) is the fifth oldest national Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix (after the French Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix, the Spanish Grand Prix and the Russian Grand Prix), having been he ...

Monza Monza (, ; lmo, label=Lombard language, Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po River, Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capit ...

.Rupert Hollaus career profile at Motorsport Memorial
/ref> Hollaus became the first posthumous

World Champion 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 1954, in the 125cc class and was runner up to his NSU teammate,

Werner Haas Werner Haas (; 30 May 1927 – 13 November 1956) was a Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from Germany. He became Germany's first motorcycle world champion when he won the 1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist ...

, in the 250cc class. On February 23, 1955, he was elected as "Austrian Sportspersonality of the year 1954" (posthum).

Motorcycle Grand Prix results

(Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

1931 births 1954 deaths People from Lilienfeld District Austrian motorcycle racers 125cc World Championship riders 250cc World Championship riders Isle of Man TT riders Motorcycle racers who died while racing Sport deaths in Italy Sportspeople from Lower Austria 125cc World Riders' Champions {{Austria-motorcycle-sport-bio-stub