Le Mans – Jim France will start!

He is the creator of Grand-Am Road Racing and the vice-president of the Nascar. And he will give the start of the next 24 Hours of Le Mans. Thirty-seven years after his brother, Bill France Jr., Jim France will have the heavy responsibility of lowering the tricolor flag to free the 56 competitors in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Saturday June 22 at 15 p.m. On April 14, in the spirit of the alliance existing for 14 years with the ALMS, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest signed a new agreement with American Le Mans Series and Grand-Am Road Racing in order to form from 2014 a unified automobile endurance championship in North America, called United SportsCar Racing. Thanks to United SportsCar Racing, the development of this automobile discipline imagined by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest in 1923 during the first edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be best ensured in North America.

“In a month, I will give the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on behalf of the entire North American automobile endurance family”, is moved by Jim France. “This demonstrates the universal interest in the merger of the two entities that preside over the organizations of this type of event in North America. All motorsport enthusiasts are now eagerly awaiting the debut of the reunited United SportsCar Racing championship at the 24 Rolex 2014 Hours of Daytona, in close collaboration with the Automobile Club de l'Ouest and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. On a more personal level, it is very gratifying for me to play the role that my brother Bill held in 1976. My father Bill Sr. always appreciated the internationalization of endurance events, the embodiment of which was, according to him, the 24 hours of Le Mans. »

The French flag which will allow Jim France to start the 24 2013 Hours of Le Mans will be symbolically presented to him on June 20 by Don Panoz, creator of the American Le Mans Series with the ACO and current vice-president of USCR in presence of President Fillon. This is the first time in its 90-year history that the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be given by two members of the same family. “We are particularly honored that Jim France has agreed to start the 24 Hours of Le Mans in this symbolic year when we are celebrating the 90th anniversary of the greatest endurance race in the world”, announces Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l?Ouest. “This proves how close the links between the club that created endurance and the authorities of North American motorsport are. Thanks to Jim France and United SportsCar Racing, a championship on which the ACO works tirelessly with its North American partners, we are confident in safeguarding the universal values ​​of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and thanks to which the success of this event allows us to shine throughout the world. »