Classification
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Time/Retired | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Léonce Girardot (FRA) | Panhard | 8:50:59 | ||||
| Ret | Levegh (FRA) | Mors | Tyres | ||||
| Ret | Fernand Charron (FRA) | Panhard | Collision/Gearbox | ||||
Source: [1] | |||||||
The 1901 Gordon Bennett Cup, formally titled the II Coupe Internationale, was a motor race held on 29 May 1901, on public roads in France between Paris and Bordeaux, concurrently with an open-entry race over the same course. Initially, France were to defend the Cup against Great Britain, however prior to the start, the sole British entry was forced to fit tyres of foreign manufacture making it ineligible for the Cup. The race was therefore competed by three French entries, the maximum permitted from one country under the rules, guaranteeing that they would retain the Cup. Léonce Girardot driving a Panhard won the race and was the only competitor to finish, with Fernand Charron driving a Panhard and Levegh driving a Mors retiring.
The Gordon Bennett races had been established by American millionaire James Gordon Bennett, Jr. in 1900, with the intention of encouraging automobile industries through sport. The inaugural event had been won by a representative of the Automobile Club de France (ACF). Under the rules of the competition, the following race was required to be held in the country that currently held the cup.
The race organisers, the ACF, decided that the race would take place concurrently with an open-entry event held on public roads taking the competitors from Paris-Bordeaux. The route for the event covered 555km, with 527km (328 miles) competitive miles and the remainder covering neutralised towns.[ citation needed ]
Each country was limited to three entries under the race's rules. The rules also stipulated that every part of the car must be manufactured in the country of the entrant. Initially, France, Germany and Britain showed interest in entering the race. The Automobilclub von Deutschland (AvD) planned to host an elimination trial on 12 May between three Mercedes cars, a Benz and a Canello-Durkopp to determine their three entries. Following Mercedes victory in the Nice-Salon-Nice race held in March however, they were automatically awarded two places by the AvD, with Benz and Canello-Durkopp to compete in the trials for the third entry. However, neither competitor showed up at the eliminating trial, and the Mercedes were withdrawn as both cars that had been built with the required all-German parts had been sold, and the manufacturer determined there was insufficient time to build any more. As such, there was no German entry in the Gordon Bennett Cup race.
The British were to be represented in the event by Selwyn Edge driving a Napier. On the way from Britain to France, Edge had reservations about the Dunlop tires fitted to the car and elected to replace them with tires of foreign manufacture making the car ineligible for the Gordon Bennett race. As a result, Edge transferred his entry to the open Paris-Bordeaux event leaving only the French to compete in the Gordon Bennett Cup race.
France entered their maximum three entries, but unlike the previous year there was no ballot for selection, instead the ACF simply announced they would be represented by Léonce Girardot and Fernand Charron driving Panhards and Alfred Velghe, who raced under the pseudonym Levagh, driving a Mors.
Fernand Charron was the first of the cars to depart from the start line, but almost immediately came to a halt and made some adjustments to his car before continuing. Levagh, the second car to start had already overtaken Charron by the time they reached Versailles. Charron continued to stop along the route due to valve problems with his Panhard car before eventually retiring from the race at Vendome. Léonce Girardot and Levegh continued through the neutralised section at Tours. At Sainte-Maure, Levegh collided with a gutter, which damaged his car to the extent that he could not continue the race, leaving Girardot as the sole remaining Gordon Bennett competitor.
Girardot reached the finish at Bordeaux to claim the Gordon Bennett cup for France again, averaging 37 mph over the course. By contrast the winner of the open race held concurrently over the same route, Henri Fournier, had averaged 53mph in his Mors, and Girardot's time saw him placed tenth in the open race.
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Time/Retired | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Léonce Girardot (FRA) | Panhard | 8:50:59 | ||||
| Ret | Levegh (FRA) | Mors | Tyres | ||||
| Ret | Fernand Charron (FRA) | Panhard | Collision/Gearbox | ||||
Source: [1] | |||||||
1903 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.
1901 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.
1900 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.
The French Grand Prix, formerly known as the Grand Prix de l'ACF, is an auto race held as part of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's annual Formula One World Championship. It is one of the oldest motor races in the world as well as the first "Grand Prix". It ceased shortly after its centenary in 2008 with 86 races having been held, due to unfavourable financial circumstances and venues. The race returned to the Formula One calendar in 2018 with Circuit Paul Ricard hosting the race.
Grand Prix motor racing, a form of motorsport competition, has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as early as 1894. It quickly evolved from simple road races from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car and driver. Innovation and the drive of competition soon saw speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour (160 km/h), but because early races took place on open roads, accidents occurred frequently, resulting in deaths both of drivers and of spectators. A common abbreviation used for Grand Prix racing is "GP" or "GP racing".
As one of three Gordon Bennett Cups established by James Gordon Bennett, Jr., millionaire owner of the New York Herald, the automobile racing award was first given in 1900 in France.
The 1906 Grand Prix de l'Automobile Club de France, commonly known as the 1906 French Grand Prix, was a motor race held on 26 and 27 June 1906, on closed public roads outside the city of Le Mans. The Grand Prix was organised by the Automobile Club de France (ACF) at the prompting of the French automobile industry as an alternative to the Gordon Bennett races, which limited each competing country's number of entries regardless of the size of its industry. France had the largest automobile industry in Europe at the time, and in an attempt to better reflect this the Grand Prix had no limit to the number of entries by any particular country. The ACF chose a 103.18-kilometre (64.11 mi) circuit, composed primarily of dust roads sealed with tar, which would be lapped six times on both days by each competitor, a combined race distance of 1,238.16 kilometres (769.36 mi). Lasting for more than 12 hours overall, the race was won by Ferenc Szisz driving for the Renault team. FIAT driver Felice Nazzaro finished second, and Albert Clément was third in a Clément-Bayard.
The Paris–Madrid race of May 1903 was an early experiment in auto racing, organized by the Automobile Club de France (ACF) and the Spanish Automobile Club, Automóvil Club Español.
Fernand Charron was a French pioneer of motor racing and automobile manufacturing. He started his sporting career as a successful cyclist.
Charron was a French automobile manufacturer, based in the Paris conurbation, and active between 1906 and 1930.
Automobiles Charron, Girardot & Voigt SA was a French motor manufacturer founded by the racing cyclists and motorists Fernand Charron, Léonce Girardot and Émile Voigt.
Léon Théry was a French racing driver, nicknamed "Le Chronometer", who won the premier European race, the Gordon Bennett Cup, in both 1904 and 1905.
The 1900 Gordon Bennett Cup, formally titled the I Coupe Internationale, was a motor race held on 14 June 1900, on public roads between Paris and Lyon in France. It was staged to decide the inaugural holder of the Gordon Bennett Cup, which was the first prize to be awarded for motorsport on an international level. The 568.66 km (353.35 mi) route started at Paris and headed south-west as far as Châteaudun. The route then took the competitors south-easterly, passing through Orléans, Nevers, and Roanne before reaching the finish at Lyon.
The 1902 Gordon Bennett Cup, formally titled the III Coupe Internationale, was a motor race held on 26–28 June 1902, on public roads between Paris, France, and Innsbruck, Austria. The race was held over a 565 km section of the route of the Paris-Vienna race, held concurrently. France were to attempt to defend the Gordon Bennett Cup against Britain, and each country was represented by three entries, with the car that finished the race in the shortest time winning the race on behalf of his country. Selwyn Edge driving a Napier, and representing the Automobile Club of Britain and Ireland, was the only competitor to finish the race and so Britain were the winners of the Gordon Bennett Cup and would be required to defend it in Britain the following year.
Charles Jarrott was an English racing car driver and businessman. Jarrott raced from 1900 to 1904, winning the 1902 Circuit des Ardennes race and competing in the 1903 and 1904 Gordon Bennett Cup races. He was the chair of the Motor Cycling Club's Annual Dinner at the Trocadero on Saturday 12 December 1913. He co-founded a car import firm in 1902 and was a founder member of the Automobile Association, serving as chairman in 1922.
The 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup, formally titled the IV Coupe Internationale, was a motor race held on 2 July 1903, on the Athy Circuit consisting of closed roads in Ireland. The race consisted of seven laps - alternating for six laps over a shorter circuit to the west of Athy and longer circuit to the East, before a final lap on the longer circuit to make the total distance 527 km. A British entry had won the previous edition of the race, which meant that the rights to host the race fell to the Automobile Club of Britain and Ireland. Legislation was passed to allow the race to take place on roads in Ireland, then a part of the United Kingdom. Britain were to attempt to defend the Gordon Bennett Cup against France, Germany and the USA, and each country was represented by three entries, with the car that finished the race in the shortest time winning the race on behalf of his country.
Léonce Girardot was a French racing driver. He drove for Panhard & Levassor, the leading brand of this era and his strongest competitors were his teammates Fernand Charron and René de Knyff.
Alfred Velghe was a Belgian-French racing driver and cyclist who competed under the pseudonym Levegh.
The 1905 Gordon Bennett Cup, formally titled the VI Coupe Internationale, was a motor race held on 5 July 1905 on the Auvergne Circuit in France. The race consisted of four laps of the mountainous 137.35-km (85.35-mile) circuit, to make the total distance 549.4 km. A French entry driven by Léon Théry had won the previous year's edition of the race, which meant that the rights to host the race fell to the Automobile Club de France (ACF). France were to attempt to defend the Gordon Bennett Cup against Germany, Great Britain, Austria, Italy and the United States, and each country was represented by three entries, with the car that finished the race in the shortest time winning the race on behalf of his country. This meant the largest field of any Gordon Bennett race with 18 entries competing on behalf of six countries.
The 1898 Paris–Amsterdam–Paris Race was a competitive 'city to city' motor race which ran over 7 days from 7–13 July 1898 and covered 1,431 km. It was won by Fernand Charron driving a Panhard et Levassor for 33 hours at an average speed of 43 km/h over unsurfaced roads.