Björn Waldegård facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Björn Waldegård

Björn Waldegård during the Rally of the Midnight Sun in Västerås, Sweden in July 2011
Personal information
Nationality	Swedish
Born	(1943-11-12)12 November 1943 Solna
Died	29 August 2014(2014-08-29) (aged 70)
World Rally Championship record
Active years	1973–1992
Co-driver	Hans Thorszelius Fred Gallagher
Teams	BMW, Toyota, Lancia, Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Fiat
Rallies	95
Championships	1 (1979)
Rally wins	16
Podiums	35
Stage wins	290
Total points	428
First rally	1973 Monte Carlo Rally
First win	1975 Swedish Rally
Last win	1990 Safari Rally
Last rally	1992 Safari Rally

Björn Waldegård (born November 12, 1943 – died August 29, 2014) was a famous Swedish rally driver. He made history by winning the very first World Rally Championship for drivers in 1979. People in Sweden often called him "Walle".

Björn Waldegård's Amazing Career

Björn Waldegård, who came from Rimbo, had a super long career in rally racing. It lasted for four decades! He started racing in 1962. After winning the Swedish Rally Championship in 1967 and 1968, he kept racing at the top level until 1992. He had to stop because he broke his arm in a crash during the 1992 Safari Rally.

His first big international win was in 1969 at the Monte Carlo Rally. He was driving a Porsche 911 then. His last win was for Toyota at the 1990 Safari Rally. This made him the oldest driver ever to win a World Rally Championship event. He held this record for a long time, until 2022!

In the mid-1970s, Björn also tried Rallycross racing. This is a mix of rally and circuit racing. He drove a Porsche Carrera RSR. His best result was finishing second in the 1974 Embassy European Rallycross Championship.

Team Challenges and Big Wins

In the 1970s, Björn Waldegård often raced for the Alitalia-sponsored Lancia team. He was one of their star drivers, along with Italian racer Sandro Munari. Sometimes, they even competed against each other!

At the 1976 Rallye Sanremo, Björn was leading Munari by just four seconds. The team wanted them to finish equally, but Björn didn't listen. He overtook Munari and won by four seconds! After this, Björn left Lancia and joined Ford in late 1976.

Driving Ford Escort RS1800 cars, Björn won three of the toughest rallies in the world in 1977. These were the East African Safari Rally, the Acropolis Rally, and the RAC Rally.

He then became the first-ever winner of the World Rally Championship series in 1979. He won it for Ford and Mercedes-Benz. He beat his rival Hannu Mikkola in the very last race, the Rallye Côte d'Ivoire in the Ivory Coast. Björn finished second in that race, which was enough to win the championship!

Björn Waldegård at the 2008 Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally.

In September 2008, Björn Waldegård took part in the Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally in Scotland. This event was held to remember Colin McRae, another famous rally driver who passed away in 2007. Björn was one of many former world champions who raced there. He drove a Porsche 911.

Besides rallying, Björn also raced in the 1970 Targa Florio. This was a very old sports car endurance race in Sicily, Italy. It was a bit like a rally race on public roads, which is why Björn, a rally driver, took part. He drove a Porsche 908/3 and finished fifth with his co-driver Richard Attwood.

Björn Waldegård passed away on August 29, 2014, from cancer. He was 70 years old.

International Victories

Here are some of Björn Waldegård's big wins from early in his career:

WRC Victories

Björn Waldegård won 16 World Rally Championship events. Here are all of them:

#	Event	Season	Co-driver	Car
1	25th International Swedish Rally	1975	Hans Thorszelius	Lancia Stratos HF
2	17º Rallye Sanremo	1975	Hans Thorszelius	Lancia Stratos HF
3	18º Rallye Sanremo	1976	Hans Thorszelius	Lancia Stratos HF
4	25th Safari Rally	1977	Hans Thorszelius	Ford Escort RS1800
5	24th Acropolis Rally	1977	Hans Thorszelius	Ford Escort RS1800
6	26th Lombard RAC Rally	1977	Hans Thorszelius	Ford Escort RS1800
7	28th International Swedish Rally	1978	Hans Thorszelius	Ford Escort RS1800
8	26th Acropolis Rally	1979	Hans Thorszelius	Ford Escort RS1800
9	7ème Critérium Molson du Québec	1979	Hans Thorszelius	Ford Escort RS1800
10	12ème Rallye Côte d'Ivoire	1980	Hans Thorszelius	Mercedes 500 SLC
11	12th Motogard Rally of New Zealand	1982	Hans Thorszelius	Toyota Celica 2000GT
12	15ème Rallye Côte d'Ivoire	1983	Hans Thorszelius	Toyota Celica TCT
13	32nd Marlboro Safari Rally	1984	Hans Thorszelius	Toyota Celica TCT
14	34th Marlboro Safari Rally Kenya	1986	Fred Gallagher	Toyota Celica TCT
15	18ème Rallye Côte d'Ivoire	1986	Fred Gallagher	Toyota Celica TCT
16	38th Marlboro Safari Rally Kenya	1990	Fred Gallagher	Toyota Celica GT-Four ST165

See also

In Spanish: Björn Waldegård para niños