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French alpine skier (1937–1973) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
François Pierre Philippe Bonlieu (21 March 1937 – 18 August 1973) was a French alpine skier. Bonlieu debuted for the French alpine skiing national team when he was 15 years old. He was a four time French Champion (twice in the giant slalom, once in the slalom and Alpine Combined). He was killed in a fight in 1973.
 Bonlieu, pictured in 1964 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Birth name | François Pierre Philippe Bonlieu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team |  France | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 21 March 1937 Juvincourt-et-Damary, Aisne, France | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 18 August 1973 (aged 36) Croisette, Cannes, France | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 167 cm (5 ft 6 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 60 kg (132 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relative | Edith Bonlieu (sister) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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François Pierre Philippe Bonlieu was born at Juvincourt-et-Damary, Aisne, on 21 March 1937.[1] He experienced difficulty in childhood and was "virtually homeless".[1][2] He never knew his father, and after the end of World War II his mother moved to Contamines in the Alps.[1] He became interested in skiing at a young age while living in the Alps, teaching himself.[1]
Bonlieu debuted for the French alpine skiing national team when he was 15 years old, after winning a youth cup.[1] At the age of 17 he placed second in the Alpine World Ski Championships in 1954.[1][3] This success caused him issues, however, as his early career success led to little success over the next decade.[1][4] He did eventually win the Kandahar slalom in 1959.[1]
The next few years his career was inactive as he served in the Algerian War, returning both physically and mentally ill.[1] In 1964, he won the special slalom in Hindelang, beating out Billy Kidd and Bud Werner.[5] He won the gold medal in the 1964 Olympic Games in Innsbruck, Austria in the Giant slalom.[6] Before his victory, he stated he was "sure he would win", and that "in eight days I will have erased 10 years of emptiness".[7]
He was known for his unusual and morose personality and remarks, and often conflicted with Honoré Bonnet, the coach of the French team.[3][2] He was known to disappear for days on end.[7] He was small in stature and was known to have health difficulties.[2]
His sister Edith Bonlieu, also an alpine skier, was a member of the cult Order of the Solar Temple and died in a mass suicide in December 1995.[8] Edith was married to fellow Olympic skiing gold medalist Jean Vuarnet; Bonlieu often lived with them.[7]
On 18 August 1973, Bonlieu died at the age of 36, following a brawl in Croisette in Cannes after an argument.[3][9] His body had been discovered the night of the 16th in the basement of the port. Initially a surgery was planned in an attempt to save his life, but his injury was too severe.[10]
Initial police investigation was unable to determine if he had been attacked or fallen in a harbor, and an investigation was opened as a result.[3] No one in Cannes knew him personally and no one knew how long he had been there.[10]
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