Víctor Palomo

Víctor Palomo Juez was a Spanish sportsman who reached the top level in three very different disciplines. Born in Barcelona on 25 May 1948, he took up water skiing in 1959 and won the 1969 world slalom championship at the age of 21, after winning Spanish juvenile and European junior titles in his teens. In 1968 he represented Spain as a member of the bobsleigh team at the Winter Olympics in Grenoble. After breaking both knees in training he switched to motorcycles, starting in motocross and then moving to Grand Prix road racing on privateer Yamaha machines. He took a first Grand Prix podium in 1973, won the 1974 Spanish 350cc Grand Prix at Montjuich and became the 1976 Formula 750 world champion in a title decided amid controversy over the Venezuelan round. Serious crashes ended his career, and he died in Girona in 1985, aged 36.