The race EN – Ollon-Villars

The race

Presentation

Friends of Ollon Villars. In 2028 we will be coming together again to revive the ambiance and thrill of the European Hill Climb championship as it was in the early 1970’s…

The start is in the heart of the peaceful wine growing village of Ollon and the route climbs the daunting mountain road to the ski station of Villars. Drivers and riders will once again have the opportunity to experience the challenge of this historic course.

This is a rare chance to come together and relive the glory days of Ollon-Villars. It is an unmissable opportunity which is repeated only every three years. The event gives everyone, participants, organisers and spectators alike, the unique opportunity to ‘see, hear and smell the engines giving their all on the mountain’.

With the paddock in Villars open to the public there is the chance for them to get close to the riders, drivers and their machines. The spectators will enjoy a fantastic experience which they will remember for a long time.

Many riders, drivers and their machines, which have a European and worldwide reputation for being part of this historic sport, will return to make the 8.3kms climb on the original course from Ollon to Villars. They come to enjoy it and we hope you will as well.

Historical

1971

The last time the event ran competitively it was a round of the European Hill Climb championship. This was the tenth running of the event since it started in 1953. Each event allowed many people, as many as 40,000 at the height of its popularity, to see the elite motor sport drivers make an assault on a hill which was agreed to be the best, most beautiful and most prestigious of all the European hills. Lying between to the vineyards of Ollon and the skiing resort of Villars, in the heart of the Vaudoises Alps, and with the backdrop of the Dents du Midi the hill was unparalleled for sheer beauty.

The list of participants contains many, many famous names from the world motor sport stage. To name but a few there were Toulo de Graffenried, Willy Daetwyler, Hans Ruesch, Heini Walter, Jo Siffert, Herbert Müller, Peter Schetty, Georges Gachnang, Sylvio Moser. There were also foreign drivers such as Jean Behra, Maurice Trintignant, Von Hanstein, Louis Chiron, Maglioli, Gendebien, Hans Stück, Innes Ireland, W. Von Trip, Hans Hermann, Jo Bonnier, Edgar Barth, Cabianca, Greger, Scarfioti, Lorenzo, Bandini, Vaccarella, Stommelen, Gerhard Mitter, Jack Brabam, Patsy Burt, the sensational Jim Clark and not forgetting François Cevert who set the final hill record at 3’47”05.

Starting in 1965 motorcycles and sidecars were added to the programme. Many famous names made their way to the famous course of Ollon-Villars to pit their skills and machines against the hill. Solo riders included three time World Champion Luigi Taveri, Dieter Braun, H G Anscheidt, Angelo Tenconi and Walter Rungg as well as the fastest side-car crews such as Florian Camathias, Max Deubel and the Castella brothers.

2025

OLLON-VILLARS 2025

Pour la 9^ème édition, le comité d’organisation a eu le grand privilège d’avoir les participations de Giacomo Agostini, le pilote moto avec quinze titres de Champion du Monde et Freddie Spencer qui fêtait cette année les 40 ans de son double titre en 250 cm³ et 500 cm³ en 1985 sur Honda. Rolf Biland et Kurt Waltisperg, Bruno Kneubülher, Jacques Cornu et Philippe Coulon étaient aussi de la fête en compagnie amicale de Jean-Jacques Loup pilote au Dakar. Etaient également présents Erik Comas et Nicolas Prost, pilotes renommés et l’équipage féminin du Team Shakti (Carine Randin et Mélanie Grognuz) qui a gagné le rallye des Gazelles au Maroc au printemps 2025.

Plus de 300 véhicules de course sont montés sur le parcours mythique reliant Ollon à Villars, avec un plateau exceptionnel de véhicules ex Jim Clark ou en rapport direct avec le champion écossais, monoplaces F1, F2 et F3, des voitures de Grand Prix, des sport-protos, motos et side-cars provenant de toute l’Europe.

9^ème édition Ollon-Villars : un Succès toujours plus grandissant

2022

OLLON-VILLARS 2022

It took five long years before the Rétrospective Internationale d’Ollon-Villars could take place again.

The event is normally held every three years. After 2017, the next event should have taken place in 2020. For reasons we are all aware of, the committee, by dint of tenacity with its loyal partners, succeeded in bringing the event to life under regular conditions on the weekend of August 20 and 21, 2022. The race was held for the first time in 1953, and nine others followed at irregular intervals until 1971. Retrospectives followed in 1998, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2017 and this year, 2022, it was the 8th edition in the modern era.

Once again, it was a great event with many well-known participants and vehicles. The multiple world champion (15 times) Giacomo Agostini, who took part in the “Retro” with a Holger Lange MV Agusta, was certainly a highlight. A courtesy visit on Saturday from three-time F1 world champion Jackie Stewart, accompanied by his son Paul at the wheel of a beautiful Ferrari 275 GT. Bruno Kneubühler was also present, as was Nicolas Prost, son of four-time Formula 1 world champion Alain Prost, and many other big names, to the delight of all the other participants and an enthusiastic public (over 10,000 spectators).

Many thanks to all.

2017

Everyone who came said the weekend of September 14th and 15th 2017 was a great success. There were simply so many interesting vehicles present – including the actual cars which set the hill record in 1963 and 1971!

A knowledgeable crowd (between 6,000 and 8,000 spectators) greeted great champions like Freddie Spencer, triple world 500cc motorcycle champion, and Rolf Biland & Kurt Waltisperg, 6 times world sidecar champions. In the cars, of particular note was the appearance of Erik Comas, former F1 driver in the Lancia Stratos with which he had just won the 2013 Tour Auto – an aural pleasure if ever there was one.

2013

This year the 6th Ollon-Villars Retrospective offers the chance to see two very rare and unique record breaking cars from 1963 and 1971 in action!!

For the 1963 Ollon-Villars hill climb the Swedish driver Jo Bonnier brought a Ferguson P99 and set a time of 4m 23.0secs. This was the only four wheel drive Formula 1 car ever built. It was driven by Sir Stirling Moss to, what was to prove to be, the last victory for a front engine Formula 1 car in 1961 at Oulton Park, Cheshire, England. We are delighted to welcome Mr Stuart Rolt from England with this exceedingly unusual and interesting car.

2010

The 5th International Retrospective took place during September 2010. The event organisers were very pleased to welcome a number of internationally recognised drivers including the Torro Rosso Formula 1 driver Sebastien Buemi, Le Mans, GT1 and Formula 2 ace Natacha Gachnang, and also the 2010 Swiss Historic Rally Champions, Gerald Toedtli and Manu Guex, with their Ford Escort Mk1. Overall more than 300 vehicles came to face the sharp bends, the flowing fast stretches and the supreme challenge of the celebrated hill which gave pleasure to spectators and drivers alike.

2007

The 4th International Retrospective ran in 2007, again using the legendary course. Over 270 vehicles were brought to face the classic challenge. There were more than 1000 climbs over the course of the weekend. Cars were classified into Formula 1, Formula 2 and Formula 3. There were also Prototypes, GT cars and we must not forget our friends with their motor cycles and three wheeled outfits. More than 80 vehicles came from other countries. England, Scotland, Italy, France, Germany, Austria and Greece were all represented.

2003

In 2003 a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first event to have taken place over this classic course was made. For this event the number of vehicles rose again to 300 and there were more than 90 foreign entries, some from as far afield as the South of Italy and Scotland. The event was blessed with beautiful weather and many spectators again enjoyed a tremendous spectacle.

2001

In 2001 the event celebrated the 30th anniversary of the last time the hill was used in anger. The organising team managed to attract an unprecedented 220 vehicles. Such a large collection of classic vehicles had never before been assembled in Switzerland. This was a joy to behold for any classic vehicle enthusiast

1998

The first International Retrospective Hill Climb was staged in 1998. Over the weekend of 19th and 20th September 1998 more than 12,000 enthusiastic spectators came to relive the thrills and atmosphere of the original events. In the original events vehicles left the start at 30 second intervals and this tradition was continued in the Retrospectives. Everyone was thrilled at the sights and sounds of powerful engines being demonstrated in the style for which they had been designed over such a challenging course.