Jean-Luc Thérier and the Musketeers

Jean-Luc Thérier, was one of that select band of rally drivers who can connect with the people in a way that transcends simply driving a car and winning trophies. His sideways style and joie de vivre made him a star of the sport and beloved of his adoring French fans, not unlike François Delecour 20 years later.

Thérier had started by racing karts, but it was on the stages where he made his name, particularly after he joined the Alpine team in the late 1960s. He competed in the Monte Carlo Rally 13 times but never won it, and also made four appearances in the Le Mans 24 Hours.

In 1973, the first year of the WRC, he notched up three victories that helped Alpine to the title. The big team from a small manufacturer were christened the ‘Musketeers’ by the British press for being an all-French crew, with not only Thérier but stars like Jean-Claude Andruet, Bernard Darniche and Jean-Pierre Nicolas. Therier’s wins would have made him world champion, but there was no such thing; a driver’s title wasn’t official until 1979.

After leaving Alpine he suffered some fruitless years with Toyota before winning the 1982 French Rally Championship in a Renault 5 Turbo. He was challenging for the lead in the 1985 Paris-Dakar rally when he suffered a serious accident which led to his left arm being paralysed and the immediate end of his competitive career. The ‘champion that never was’ and the darling of French rally fans died in 2019.