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 JONATHAN JONES was born in Cardigan in 1957.
A life-long Cardigan resident, Jones would watch the annual speedboat races in the town as a child and dreamed of becoming a racer.
Jones was given his first opportunity to try the sport when he was 15, racing in a 12-foot boat with a 25 horsepower engine, and after a few races he was completely hooked.
Now married with three children, Jones still lives in the town despite regular globe-trotting trips that come in the wake of his success as one of the world's top powerboat competitors.
The four-time F1 powerboating world champion - who took the title in 1985, 1989, 1991 and 1998 - last took part in the championships in 2003.
Competing for the Dragon Racing Team he showed why - despite not racing in over a year - he could still compete with the best.
Only entering two races, he qualified 16th in Malaysia - and was up to eighth before dropping out - and made the "top-six shootout" in Singapore.
In 1979 he won his first big race - the F4 world championship at Bristol Dock - and two years later he took the British title before moving up to F1.
In 1985, at the age of 22, he became F1 world champion for the first time, repeating the success in 1989.
But it was his against-the-odds triumph in 1991 that really showed the character of the man.
Involved in a horrific crash at the Hungarian Grand Prix, Jones suffered a compound leg fracture which prevented him from competing in three of the championship rounds.
After an operation to insert a metal plate in his leg - running from his knee to his ankle and held in with 18 pins - Jones was determined to compete and in the final grand prix at Singapore three months later he took the championship by a single point from Germany's Michael Werner.
Like motor racing, powerboating is a sophisticated, hi-tech sport and Jones' boat, which can rocket from 0-60 mph in under two seconds, generates around 400 horsepower and is capable of more than 150 mph.
When he's not competing or commentating on the sport, Jones works in a bank in Fishguard.
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