John Deacon (motorcyclist)

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John Deacon (30 November 1962 – 8 August 2001) was a British motorcycle enduro racer. He won several stages of the Paris–Dakar Rally, was ten times British Enduro four-stroke champion, and earned nine gold medals at the International Six Days Enduro event.

He first competed in the Paris–Dakar in 1997 and became only the second British rider to finish the three-week, 7,000-mile race across Africa on a motorcycle. Within two years, he achieved Britain’s best finish in the event, coming sixth, despite having to fund his own participation as rivals enjoyed strong financial backing.

In the 2000 Paris–Dakar rally, run in reverse from Senegal to Egypt, he was offered a ride with the BMW Gauloises team but crashed on day five, injuring his pelvis, wrist, and shoulder.

Deacon also took part in the 2001 Masters Rally from France to Jordan, riding a BMW. On 8 August 2001, during the seventh stage near Palmyra in Syria, he fell on rocks and later died from his injuries.

He is survived by his wife Tracey and two children, James and Zoe. His family runs JD Racing, a KTM and Gas Gas dealership, in Saltash, Cornwall.