Francisco "Paquito" Fernández Ochoa (25 February 1950 – 6 November 2006) was a World Cup alpine ski racer from Spain. Born in Madrid and raised north of the city in Cercedilla, he was the eldest of eight children whose father ran a ski school. Paquito raced in all of the alpine disciplines and specialized in slalom.

At the age of 21, he won an Olympic gold medal in the slalom at the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, Japan. He is known for being the first Spaniard to win a gold medal at the Winter Olympics. His sister Blanca earned Spain its second medal at the Winter Olympics, 20 years after him, in the same discipline, slalom.

Career Fernández Ochoa made his international debut at age 17 at the 1968 Winter Olympics, where he finished 38th in the downhill and giant slalom, and 23rd in the slalom. His first top ten finish on the World Cup circuit was the following season, a sixth-place finish in the slalom at Megève, France, on January 26, 1969.

He was one of five siblings that raced for the Spanish alpine ski team and competed at the Winter Olympics (the others being his brothers Luís and Juan Manuel, and sisters Dolores and Blanca). Blanca was the only other Spanish alpine skier to win a medal at the Winter Olympics; she won the bronze in the women's slalom at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.

Fernández Ochoa competed in four Winter Olympics (1968-80). He won only one World Cup race, a slalom in 1974 in Zakopane, Poland. Both of his career wins came over Gustav Thöni of Italy, the dominant technical ski racer of the early 1970s.

At the 1974 World Championships, Fernández Ochoa won a bronze medal in the slalom. His best season was 1975; he finished 9th in the overall standings and 7th in the slalom standings. He finished ninth in the slalom at the 1976 Winter Olympics.

Fernández Ochoa retired from international competition at age 30, following the 1980 World Cup season, and finished with four World Cup podiums (top 3) and 30 top ten finishes. He then raced for several seasons on the pro tour in North America.

Fernández Ochoa died of lymphatic cancer at age 56 in Cercedilla, Community of Madrid in November 2006. Less than two weeks before his death, a statue of him was erected in Cercedilla. He was survived by his wife María Jesús Vargas (m. 1973) and their three children: Bárbara, Paula, and Francisco.

Francisco Fernández Ochoa City Ice Rink in Valdemoro, Madrid and Francisco Fernández Ochoa City Sports Center in Carabanchel, Madrid were named in his honor.

World Cup results Season standings Season Age Overall  Slalom  Giant Slalom  Super-G Downhill Combined 1969 18 38 20 — not run — notawarded 1970 19 55 34 — — 1971 20 39 19 — — 1972 21 — — — — 1973 22 34 18 27 — 1974 23 15 8 — — 1975 24 9 7 — — 1976 25 — — — — — 1977 26 — — — — — 1978 27 63 — — — 19 1979 28 91 — — — — 1980 29 38 33 — — 5 Points were only awarded for top ten finishes thru 1979, top 15 thru 1991 (see scoring system).

Race podiums 1 win (1 SL) 4 podiums (2 SL, 2 K) SeasonDateLocationDisciplinePlace1974 March 6, 1974 Zakopane, PolandSlalom1stMarch 10, 1974 Vysoké Tatry, Czechoslovakia Slalom 3rd1975 January 19, 1975 Kitzbühel, Austria Combined 2ndFebruary 1, 1975 Megève, France Combined 2nd

World Championship results   Year    Location   Age   Slalom  Giant Slalom  Super-G Downhill Combined 1968 Grenoble, France 17 23 38 notrun 38 1970 Val Gardena, Italy 19 9 9 1972 Sapporo, Japan 21 1 DSQ1 — — 1974 St. Moritz, Switzerland 23 3 1976 Innsbruck, Austria   25 9 24 35 6 1978 Garmisch, W. Germany 27 1980 Lake Placid, USA 29 22 22 27 5 From 1948 through 1980, the Winter Olympics were also the World Championships for alpine skiing. At the World Championships from 1954 through 1980, the combined was a "paper race" using the results of the three events (DH, GS, SL).

Olympic results   Year    Location   Age   Slalom  Giant Slalom  Super-G Downhill Combined 1968 Grenoble, France 17 23 38 notrun 38 notrun 1972 Sapporo, Japan 21 1 DSQ1 — 1976 Innsbruck, Austria   25 9 24 35 1980 Lake Placid, USA 29 22 22 27

Notes

See also List of flag bearers for Spain at the Olympics List of Olympic medalist families

References

External links

Francisco Fernandez Ochoa World Cup standings at the International Ski Federation

- 1972 Winter Olympics - Men's slalom – Gold medal second run - from Japanese television - 1972-02-13 Obituary for Francisco Fernández Ochoa - 2006-11-06 at elmundo.es Coverage of funeral of Francisco Fernández Ochoa - 2006-11-07 at elmundo.es