Ove Vilmer Lundell (29 May 1930 – 4 September 2001) was a Swedish professional motocross racer.^[1] He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1958 to 1965. Lundell was one of the top off-road motorcyclists of his era coming from Sweden, a nation that produced many of the sport's first world champions.^[1][2]

Motorcycling career

Lundell was born in Möklinta outside Sala in the county of Västmanland, Sweden.^[3] His career began at the age of fifteen, when he performed at Swedish circuses where he rode Wall of Death carnival sideshows on an old Indian motorcycle.^[1][3]

Lundell worked during the 1950s and 1960s as a rider for the Monark factory racing team.^[1] Monark was a large Swedish bicycle and motorcycle manufacturer that was also involved in construction and development. Lundell won the Swedish motocross national championship in 1955, 1958 and 1960, and was a member of victorious Swedish Motocross des Nations teams in 1958, 1961 and 1962.^[1] Lundell won his first and only motocross world championship race on 30 June, 1963 at the 500cc Russian Grand Prix.^[4]

Lundell was also successful in a variety other events, such as road racing, enduro, and Snowmobile races.^[3] Lundell won several Gold Medals in the International Six Days Trial and won the Swedish enduro national championship riding Monark motorcycles.^[3]

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Lundell was a highly regarded coach for young Swedish motorcycle riders, based at Anneberg Motocross Track outside Varberg on the Swedish west coast. From the mid-1970s to the early 1980s he worked in Manaus, Brazil helping develop a Monark moped for that country.^[3] He returned to Sweden and in 1984, he started racing again, taking part in many National and International vintage racing events with great success.^[3] He died of cancer in Varberg in the county of Halland, Sweden.^[1][3]