Artefacts

Squaw Valley 1960, pair of skis used by Jean VUARNET (FRA), downhill Olympic champion.

Physical description

Pair of Rossignol skis, model Allais N ° 60, with binding Look, model Nevada of which one is missing. Circular label with the caption: "VIII ° OLYMPIC GAMES / 1960 / SQUAW VALLEY" with the Olympic symbol.

Created

Created: Rossignol Created: Look

Used

Used: Jean VUARNET

Materials

metal, aluminium

Colors

silver, black

Dimension

12 x 8 x 220 cm, 6.2 kg

Literature

MASIA, Seth. "Rossignol Turns 100". In: Skiing Heritage, Dcember 2007, pp. 31-37. LAZARD, Alain. "Jean Vuarnet". In: Skiing History Magazine, 7 May 2016, https://www.skiinghistory.org/news/jean-vuarnet

Type of item

Sport equipment -> ski

Reference number

236214

Ensemble

Keywords

Olympic champion Squaw Valley 1960, Olympic Winter Games France Alpine Skiing/Downhill[M]

Notes

Squaw Valley 1960 – skis, helmet and bib belonging to Jean VUARNET (FRA), Olympic downhill champion. The high point of Jean Vuarnet’s career was his victory, at the age of 27, at the Winter Games in Squaw Valley in 1960. In the early 1960s, the skis used for competition were still made of laminated wood. One of the major disadvantages was that there were differences between the two skis in the same pair. Vuarnet left France for the Games without a satisfactory pair of skis; he was comfortable with only one of the two. He sent an urgent request to Rossignol to provide him with a second ski… which he received in California just a few days before the race! Donated by the athlete’s son