Juan Fernández (English version)

This beloved sculpture has been donated to the Hon. Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Council, representing all citizens and visitors to the Canary Islands,

IN MEMORIAM
D. JUAN FERNÁNDEZ GARCÍA
SABADELL, 11/12/1930 – 22/6/2020

Laureate car driver and above all a best person, winner of countless motor tests throughout his long career of more than 40 years as an exemplary athlete.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife, December 15, 2021.

Biography

Born in Sabadell on December 11, 1930.

Son of Teresa García Fortuny and Ramiro Fernández Casas, he worked in the family textile company founded by his father, Ramiro Fernández, S.A., dedicated to the manufacture of yarns and fabrics for women.

The textile industry was the most important in Sabadell, a city that since the mid-nineteenth century and thanks to the success of the “Industrial Revolution” had stood out for its progress and modernity, which favored the appearance of numerous supporters clubs and sports clubs. Modalities such as cycling, football, hiking, athletics, roller hockey and also motor sports had a prominent presence and a good number of practitioners, which is why Sabadell was baptized as the “Pilot City of Spanish Sport ”.

Juan Fernández García began playing roller hockey, a sport in which he excelled, and later he opted for skiing. The next step was motorcycling, and finally motor racing.

The experience gained by practicing the slalom modality when he was skiing, helped him to apply sliding techniques in driving. When he talked about the Porsche, he used to say that he liked to “make them ski”, in the sense of making them slide where and when it was best suited.

His activity in the motor world began with winning a gymkhana held in Vilanova i la Geltrú in 1949 with a Montesa B46, and it ended almost half a century later, at the Montmeló circuit in Barcelona-Catalunya, at the wheel of an Audi A3 diesel with which he ran the 24 Hours of Barcelona in 1998.

Participations

Motorcycling

• 81 Races contested
• 25 Wins
• 17 Podiums

Motoring

• 670 Races contested
• 310 overall wins
• 197 Podiums

Honors

National and international titles

• 2 European Mountain Championships (Sport Category): 1973 and 1974
• 11 Spanish Mountain Championships: 1964, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983
• 5 Spanish Rally Championships: 1961, 1964, 1966, 1967 (Sport) and 1968
• 1 Spanish Speed ​​Championship: 1967
• 2 Spanish Open Circuit Speed ​​Championships: 1983 and 1986
• 16 Catalan Mountain Championships: 1964, 1968, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989
• 4 Catalan Rally Championships: 1961, 1964, 1966 and 1967

Runners-up

• 2 European Mountain Runners-Up (Sport Category): 1972 and 1976
• 2 Spanish Mountain Sub-Championships: 1974 and 1984
• 3 Spanish Speed ​​Runners-Up: 1969, 1970 and 1972
• 1 Sub-Championship of Spain Open Circuit Speed: 1984

Tributes and decorations

• Best Athlete of Sabadell: 1959, 1966 and 1974
• Gold Medal of the Excellency of Córdoba City Council
• Gold Medal of the Excellency Sabadell City Council
• Silver Medal of the National Sports Delegation
• Silver Medal of the Generalitat de Catalunya
• Medal of “Forger of the Sports History of Catalonia”
• Silver Plaque of the Xunta de Galicia
• National and International Champions Porsche Trophy (Presented by Ferry Porsche in Stuttgart)
• Tribute of the Reial Automòbil Club de Catalunya in l’Ametlla del Vallès
• Monolith Tribute to the Ascent in Cuesta a los Montes de Málaga (5x2mts)
• Tribute of the Escudería “El Volante de Málaga”
• Tribute of the His Excellency Sant Feliu de Codines Town Council
• Tribute of the Automòbil Club d’Andorra
• Tribute of the Vimbodí City Council (Ascent to Prades)
• Tribute of the Excellency City Council of Sóller (Ascent to Puig Major)
• Tribute from the Asturias Automobile Federation
• Tribute of the His Excellency Pontevedra City Council
• Tribute from Autopista magazine to the “Best driver of the last 25 years” (1985)
• Tribute by BMW to the driver who has achieved the most victories with the brand’s mechanics (1985)
• Tribute from Velocity magazine to the “Best pilot of the last 25 years” (1986)
• Medal of the Reial Automòbil Club de Catalunya, Auto Retro Salon of Barcelona (2008)
• Tribute at the Puig Major (2009)
• Tribute at the MotorLand Aragón Circuit (Teruel-Alcañiz)
• Medal of Honor from the Cultural Foundation of the Royal Automobile Club of Spain, Madrid Retromobile Salon (2010)