Olivier Gendebien

Olivier Jean Marie Fernand Gendebien (Template:IPA; 12 January 1924 – 2 October 1998) was a Belgian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from Template:F1 to Template:F1. Widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers in the history of sportscar racing,Template:Efn Gendebien was a four-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Ferrari, a three-time winner of the 12 Hours of Sebring, and a three-time winner of the Targa Florio.

Born and raised in Brussels, Gendebien was initially a forester in the Belgian Congo before moving back to Europe in 1952, where he began his career in rallying. He won his first event driving an Alfa Romeo 1900 TI at the Tulip Rally in 1954. Gendebien added to his successes by winning the Liège–Rome–Liège Rally, Dolomites Gold Cup Race and Rally Stella Alpina in 1955, driving a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL. Attracting the attention of Enzo Ferrari, Gendebien signed for Ferrari in Template:F1 to compete in Formula One and sportscars, making his debut in the former at the Template:F1GP.Template:Efn

Gendebien was appointed to the Order of the Crown of Belgium by Albert II in 1998.

Rally racer

Gendebien spent some years in the Belgian Congo. On his return to Europe he teamed up with Fraikin to compete in the 1952 Liège–Rome–Liège Rally using a Jaguar Mk VII saloon car. Together with Pierre Stasse, Gendebien won the sixth running of the Tulip Rally in Zandvoort in April 1954. Their car was an Alfa Romeo 1900 TI.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="motorsportmemorial.org">Template:Cite web</ref> The Gendebien and Fraiken partnership gained the nickname "the eternal bridesmaids", owing to their number of second-place finishes,<ref name=autocourse>Template:Cite web</ref> but after two previous attempts they triumphed in the Liège–Rome–Liège Rally, the Coppa d'Oro delle Dolomiti and Rally Stella Alpina in 1955, driving a Mercedes-Benz 300SL. In 1956 Olivier Gendebien and Pierre Stasse finished in third place driving a Ferrari 250 GT Europa (Nr 0373).

Formula One driver

Gendebien's success in rally competitions brought him to the attention of Enzo Ferrari, who offered him a contract to drive a Ferrari in sports car events and selected Grands Prix. Much respected as a true gentleman by everyone who knew him, he remained a member of the Ferrari team until he retired from racing. Enzo Ferrari summed him up as "a gentleman who never forgets that noblesse oblige and, when he is at the wheel, he translates this code of behaviour into an elegant and discerning forcefulness."<ref name=motorsport>Cooper, A. 1998. Obituary: Olivier Gendebien. Motor Sport, LXXIV/11 (November 1998), 4</ref>

During his career he competed in only 15 Formula One races as most of the time he was Ferrari's spare driver, filling in only occasionally. He nonetheless scored points in five races, and was only one place away from a points-scoring finish on a further two occasions.

He made his début at the 1956 Argentine Grand Prix, with the Ferrari team, but it was during a stint driving for the British Racing Partnership's Yeoman Credit Racing team in Template:F1 that Gendebien scored his best finishes; he took second in the 1960 French Grand Prix and third in front of a home crowd at the 1960 Belgian Grand Prix.

The second of these was a somewhat bitter-sweet success, as Gendebien's team-mate at the time, Chris Bristow, was killed in an accident during the race. Gendebien himself walked away with slight injuries in October 1961 after his Lotus-Climax failed to negotiate a turn during practice for the 1961 United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen, New York. The car flipped over and Gendebien's shoes were torn off by the impact.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Sports car competition

However, it was in sports car racing, particularly the long distance and endurance events, where Gendebien excelled. Piloting a 2.5-litre Ferrari, Gendebien teamed up with Maurice Trintignant to place third in the 1956 24 Hours of Le Mans. They were seven laps behind the winners, privateer Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar drivers Ron Flockhart and Ninian Sanderson.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The 1958 Grand Prix of Buenos Aires was a 1,000 kilometre event in which Gendebien paired with Wolfgang von Trips. They finished second to a fellow Ferrari pairing Phil Hill and Peter Collins. In the race Argentine Maserati driver, Jorge Magnasco, died after his car skidded and turned over.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The same year he partnered Hill and won the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans. Their victory came in a 3-litre Ferrari and secured the World Sportscar Championship for the Ferrari factory. They covered 2,511 miles with an average speed of 107 miles per hour. Hill became the first American to win the event and their Ferrari was the sole factory-sponsored car running at the end.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Ferrari drivers took the first three positions at the conclusion of the 1961 24 Hours of Le Mans and, as they were to be again the following year, Hill and Gendebien were first, averaging 115.89 miles per hour, and establishing a race record.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The duo were a natural fit and together they won the Le Mans race three times in total, with Gendebien winning it a fourth time, partnered by fellow Belgian Paul Frère in Template:24hLM. Gendebien's record number of Le Mans victories was not exceeded until Template:24hLM, when fellow-Belgian Jacky Ickx won for the fifth time.

Away from Circuit de la Sarthe, Gendebien also triumphed in the Targa Florio (1958, '61, '62), the 12 Hours of Sebring (1959, '60, '61), the 12 Hours of Reims (1957, '58) and the 1000 km Nürburgring (1962).<ref name=motorsport/> When asked about the key to winning as a race car driver, Gendebien responded: "It is a matter of taking the corners a little faster than one would want."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In honour of Gendebien's three wins at the 12 Hours of Sebring, turn 15 just before the final corner, onto the Ullman straight is named after him. He also won the Dolomites Cup, a one-lap sportscar race that took place on a 188-mile circuit in the Dolomite Mountains in Italy.

Major race victories

• Tour of Sicily : 1957
• Tour de France Automobile : 1957, 1958, 1959
• Reims 12 Hours : 1957, 1958
• Targa Florio : 1958, 1961, 1962
• 12 Hours of Sebring : 1959, 1960, 1961
• 24 hours of Le Mans : 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962
• 1000km Nürburgring : 1962

Post race life

Married with three children, Gendebien's wife pressured him to get out of the dangerous sport of automobile racing where more than two dozen of his competitors had died at the wheel. At 38 years of age, in 1962 Olivier Gendebien retired following his fourth victory at Le Mans. Independently wealthy, and an avid skier, tennis player, and equestrian rider, he devoted the rest of his life to running a variety of businesses. In 1998 King Albert II awarded him the Belgian Order of the Crown.

Olivier Gendebien died in 1998 at his home in Les Baux-de-Provence in southern France.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Racing record

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	WDC	Pts.
Template:F1	Equipe Nationale Belge	Ferrari 625	Ferrari Straight-4	ARG	MON	500	BEL DNA	NED	GBR	ITA					NC	0
Template:F1	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 555	Ferrari L4	ARG Template:Small	MON	500	BEL								23rd	2
		Lancia-Ferrari D50	Lancia V8					FRA Template:Small	GBR DNA	GER	ITA
Template:F1	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari Dino 246	Ferrari V6	ARG	MON	NED	500	BEL Template:Small	FRA	GBR	GER	POR	ITA Template:Small	MOR Template:Small	NC	0
Template:F1	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari Dino 246	Ferrari V6	MON	500	NED	FRA Template:Small	GBR	GER	POR	ITA Template:Small	USA			15th	3
Template:F1	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari Dino 246	Ferrari V6	ARG DNA	MON	500	NED								6th	10
	Yeoman Credit Racing Team	Cooper T51	Climax L4					BEL Template:Small	FRA Template:Small	GBR Template:Small	POR Template:Small	ITA	USA Template:Small
Template:F1	Equipe Nationale Belge	Emeryson Mk2	Maserati L4	MON Template:Small	NED										14th	3
	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 156	Ferrari V6			BEL Template:Small	FRA	GBR	GER	ITA
	UDT-Laystall Racing Team	Lotus 18/21	Climax L4								USA Template:Small
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Non-championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21
1956	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 555	Ferrari	BUE Template:Small	GLV	SYR	AIN	INT	NAP	100	VNW	CAE	SUS	BRH
1957	Scuderia Ferrari	Lancia D50	Lancia V8	BUE	SYR	PAU	GLV	NAP	RMS Template:Small	CAE	INT	MOD	MOR
1961	Equipe Nationale Belge	Emeryson Mk2	Maserati L4	LOM	GLV	PAU Template:Small	BRX Template:Small	VIE	AIN	SYR	NAP	LON	SIL	SOL DNA	KAN	DAN	MOD	FLG	OUL	LEW	VAL	RAN	NAT	RSA
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Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Driver	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1955	Template:Flagicon Ecurie Belge	Template:Flagicon Wolfgang Seidel	Porsche 550 RS Spyder	S 1.5	276	5th	2nd
Template:24hLM	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Maurice Trintignant	Ferrari 625 LM	S 3.0	374	3rd	2nd
Template:24hLM	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Maurice Trintignant	Ferrari 250 TR	S 5.0	109	DNF (Piston)
Template:24hLM	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Phil Hill	Ferrari 250 TR/58	S 3.0	305	1st	1st
Template:24hLM	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Phil Hill	Ferrari 250 TR/59	S 3.0	263	DNF (Overheating)
Template:24hLM	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Paul Frère	Ferrari 250 TR/59/60	S 3.0	314	1st	1st
Template:24hLM	Template:Flagicon SEFAC Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Phil Hill	Ferrari 250 TRI/61	S 3.0	333	1st	1st
Template:24hLM	Template:Flagicon SEFAC Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Phil Hill	Ferrari 330 TRI/LM	E +3.0	331	1st	1st
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Complete 12 Hours of Sebring results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1957	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Maurice Trintignant	Ferrari 250 TR	S5.0	109	DNF (Piston)
1958	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Luigi Musso	Ferrari 250 TR 58	S3.0	199	2nd	2nd
1959	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Dan Gurney Template:Flagicon Phil Hill Template:Flagicon Chuck Daigh	Ferrari 250 TR 59	S3.0	188	1st	1st
1960	Template:Flagicon Joakim Bonnier	Template:Flagicon Hans Herrmann	Porsche 718 RS60	S1.6	196	1st	1st
1961	Template:Flagicon Sefac Automobile Ferrari	Template:Flagicon Phil Hill	Ferrari 250 TRI/61	S3.0	210	1st	1st
1962	Template:Flagicon North American Racing Team	Template:Flagicon Phil Hill	Ferrari 250 GTO<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	GT3.0	196	2nd	1st
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Complete 24 Hours of Daytona results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1962	Template:Flagicon Scuderia Serenissima		Ferrari 250 GT SWB	GT3.0	75	16th	3rd
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Complete 24 Hours of Spa results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1953		Template:Flagicon Roland du Roy de Blicky	Panhard Dyna	T		DNF	DNF
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References

<references/>

External links

• Biographical article on The Speed Blog