🚔📈 Le Mans tragedy in motor racing history 📈🚔

It is not wrong to say that car racing is one of the most popular sports events in the world since the past. These races are currently running in various ways around the world. In Sri Lanka we also have the opportunity to watch various motorcycle and car races throughout the year. It is a fact that many people do not know that there is a dangerous aspect hidden behind this game.
A small fault or a small mistake made by the driver in this vehicle which is moving forward at the speed of hundreds of miles per hour is likely to cause great damage. Nowadays, due to the implementation of many special safety measures, it is possible to reduce the damage caused by accidents to a car, but in the past, such safety measures were not widely used. Due to this, many unfortunate incidents can be seen in the history of car racing. Even the world champions have died in those accidents as well as the cases where even the spectators who have come to watch motor racing have been victims of these accidents. Such a big tragedy is reported in 1955 in Le Mans, France. The accident happened there. Spectators as well as runners were victims of this accident. This is still known today as one of the darkest days in motor racing history. It is called the Le Mans Disaster.
📉 World Sportscar Championship! 📉
Since the beginning of the 1950s, motor racing has become rapidly popular around the world. Especially after the Second World War, the whole world was in the midst of an industrial revolution, and the famous car manufacturing companies were eager to add modern cars to the races. It had become their primary intention to gain success and popularize their brands all over the world. In 1955, three teams were fighting for the World Sportscar Championship. They are Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari and Jaguar. Almost all these teams were working hard to produce their state-of-the-art cars as well as to win the world championship for their team. It is said that the maximum speed of this car at that time was about 270 kilometers per hour. Mercedes-Benz was able to create a lighter car using magnesium before starting this competition.
📊 Start of the match 📊
This match started on June 11, 1955 at around 4 pm. It was at the Le Mans race track in France. A huge crowd had come to watch the match. As the world championship started, Ferrari, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz were leading the way in this stage as well. During the first hour, the above three teams had the majority of the race, while in the second hour, Ferrari's Eugenio Castellotti was slightly behind. By 6.20 pm, the 35th round of the race was underway and the Jaguar and Mercedes players were engaged in a battle and a high-speed race.
Approaching the final half of lap 35, Austin Harley's Lance Macklin was pacing the line with Jaguar's Mike Harwthon, Mercedes duo Juan Fangio and Pierre Levegh. At this moment, Austin Harley, who was traveling in the middle, collided with the Mercedes player Levegh's car behind Macklin's car.
📋 Le Mans Tragedy! 📋
After that collision, Mercedes player Pierre Levegh's car was thrown into the audience at a speed of 200 kilometers per hour. The front part of the car, including the engine, which was thrown from above, went destructively through the crowd of spectators. Many spectators who were walking up the ladders to get a better view fell victim to the overturned car. It is said that when the rear part of the car was thrown apart, driver Levegh was thrown from the car and his head hit the track and was crushed. Austin Harley rider Lance Macklin, who was hit by Levegh, hit the embankment on the other side, hitting a photographer and a police officer, and he managed to escape from the car. As a result, Macklin survived without serious injury. Fuel leaked from the back of Levegh's Mercedes, which was thrown, causing a large fire nearby.
As mentioned before, with the aim of making the vehicle lighter, the Mercedes team created a car using magnesium. The magnesium in the car caused the fire to spread faster. The firefighters, who did not understand this, continued to use water to extinguish the fire, and because of the water, the combustion of magnesium was further accelerated. Because of this, not long after, the rest of the car was completely burnt.
📌 Dead bodies scattered everywhere! 📌
After the accident, injured and dead spectators were seen almost everywhere. Duncan Hamilton, a Jaguar team driver, recalled that he saw pain, dead people and screams of despair everywhere, a disaster that felt like a dream to him. The accident killed 84 spectators, including Mercedes-Benz driver Pierre Levegh. It is also said that more than 120 people were injured. Even today, this is considered as the biggest tragedy that happened in a motor racing event. It even managed to shake the entire sports world. Levegh's lifeless body lay on the track after the crash, while Mercedes team-mate John Fitch and his wife stood nearby.

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