View source for Louis Chiron

{{Former F1 driver|
  Name = Louis Chiron |
  Image = Louis Chiron.jpg |
  image-size = 130px |
  Nationality = {{flagicon|Monaco}} [[Monaco|Monegasque]] |
  Years = {{F1|1950}} - {{F1|1951}}, {{F1|1953}}, {{F1|1955}} - {{F1|1956}}, {{F1|1958}} |
  Team(s) =  [[Maserati]]<br>[[Ecurie Rosier]]<br>''Private''<br>[[Lancia in Formula One|Lancia]]<br>[[Scuderia Centro Sud]] |
  Races = 19 (15 starts) |  Championships = 0 |
  Wins = 0 |
  Podiums = 1 |
  Points = 4 |
  Poles = 0 |
  Fastest laps = 0 |
  First race = [[1950 British Grand Prix]] |
  First win =  |
  Last win =  |
  Last race = [[1958 Monaco Grand Prix]] |
}}
{{Le Mans drivers
|Years       = {{24hLM|1928}} – {{24hLM|1929}}, {{24hLM|1931}} – {{24hLM|1933}}, {{24hLM|1937}} – {{24hLM|1938}}, {{24hLM|1951}}, {{24hLM|1953}}
|Teams       = ''Private''<br>''C.T. Weymann''<br>[[Bugatti|Equipe Bugatti]]<br>''Guy Bouriat''<br>''Capt. G.E.T. Eyston''<br>''[[Luigi Chinetti]]''<br>Ecurie Bleue<br>[[Lancia|Scuderia Lancia]]
|Best Finish = dnf <small>({{24hLM|1928}}, {{24hLM|1929}}, {{24hLM|1931}}, {{24hLM|1932}}, {{24hLM|1933}}, {{24hLM|1937}}, {{24hLM|1938}}, {{24hLM|1951}}, {{24hLM|1953}})</small>
|Class Wins  = 0
}}

'''Louis Alexandre Chiron''' (born [[3 August]] [[1899]]  in [[Monte Carlo]], [[Monaco]] – died there on [[22 June]] [[1979]]) was a champion of [[Grand Prix motor racing]]. 

As a teenager, Louis Chiron fell in love with cars and racing. He learned to drive at a young age and joined the Grand Prix circuit after [[World War I]] where he had been requisitioned from the artillery section to serve as a chauffeur. Competing in France, in 1926 he won his first local race, taking the Grand Prix de Comminges at [[Saint-Gaudens]] near the city of  [[Toulouse]]. From there, Chiron went on to drive a [[Bugatti]] and an [[Alfa Romeo P3]] to important wins in the Marseille Grand Prix, the Circuit of Masaryk, and the Spanish Grand Prix. In addition, he teamed up with champion marathon driver [[Luigi Chinetti]] to win the 1933 [[Spa 24 hours]] endurance race in [[Belgium]].  He also drove a [[Delage]] to 7th place in the [[1929 Indiananapolis 500|1929]] [[Indianapolis 500]]. He won the [[1931 Monaco Grand Prix]], and as of 2008 he is the only Monaco-born driver to have done so.

[[Image:Rome-Grand-Prix,-1928.jpg|left|frame|Louis Chiron, in the blue Bugatti, duels with Italian Gastone Brilli-Peri in the 1928 Rome Grand Prix]]

Louis Chiron's career came to an end with his retirement in 1938 and auto racing itself a year later with the outbreak of [[World War II]]. When racing resumed after the War, Chiron made a comeback and drove a [[Talbot-Lago]] to victory in two French Grand Prix races. In 1949, the first [[Monte Carlo Rally]] after [[World War II]] took place and a large celebration party was given in [[Monaco]]. In what is now regarded as one of the black moments of Chiron's life, at the party, in front of numerous race organizers, race drivers, and celebrities, Chiron denounced the female driver [[Hellé Nice]] by declaring that she had been an agent of the [[Gestapo]] during the war. (This has an ironic cast, in that the lure of a superior car led Chiron to lend his skill to the [[Mercedes-Benz]] team, which the [[Nazism|Nazis]] were using as an object of propaganda for their philosophy of racial superiority, at a time when his Jewish colleague and rival [[René Dreyfus]] could not). His unsubstantiated allegation destroyed Nice's life and she would be shunned by all, dying in abject poverty.

By the time the new [[Formula 1]] circuit was organized for the 1950 racing season, age was beginning to catch up with him but he still won the 1954 [[Monte Carlo Rally]] paired with Swiss racedriver [[Ciro Basadonna]]. In F1 racing, Chiron did manage a podium finish in his fifteen races and in 1955, in front of a hometown Monte Carlo crowd, a few weeks before his 56th birthday he became the oldest driver to compete in a Formula 1 race. To the applause of [[Rainier III, Prince of Monaco|Prince Rainier]] and his many fans he guided his [[Lancia in Formula One|Lancia]] [[Lancia D50|D50]] to a sixth place finish in the [[1955 Monaco Grand Prix]].

After a remarkable 35 years in racing, on his retirement Chiron still remained active as an executive with the organization running the Monaco Grand Prix who honored him with a statue erected along the Grand Prix racecourse and named one of the track's curves for him. Louis Chiron held the most podiums in Bugatti cars, and the 21st Century Bugatti company remembered him with the [[Bugatti 18/3 Chiron]] named in his honor.

Louis Chiron is also known for being the oldest driver who has ever taken part in a Formula One Grand Prix. In his last F1 race, the [[1958 Monaco Grand Prix]], he was 58 years old.

'''Major career victories:'''
*[[Belgian Grand Prix]] : 1930
*[[Czechoslovakian Grand Prix]] : 1931, 1932, 1933
*[[French Grand Prix]] : 1931, 1934, 1937, 1947, 1949 (Reims)
*[[German Grand Prix]] : 1929
*[[Italian Grand Prix]] : 1928
*[[Spanish Grand Prix]] : 1928, 1929, 1933
*[[Grand Prix du Comminges]] : 1947
*[[Grand Prix de Marseilles]] : 1933
*[[Grand Prix de Nice]] : 1932
*[[Spa 24 hours]] : 1933
*[[Rome Royal Grand Prix]] : 1928
*[[Marne Grand Prix]] : 1928

{{-}}
==Complete European Championship results==
([[:Template:EC driver results legend|key]]) (Races in '''bold''' indicate pole position)
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:95%"
! Year
! Entrant
! Make
! 1
! 2
! 3
! 4
! 5
! EDC
! Points
|-
| [[1931 Grand Prix season|1931]]
! [[Bugatti|Usines Bugatti]]
! [[Bugatti]]
| bgcolor="#efcfff"| [[1931 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
| bgcolor="#ffffbf"| [[1931 French Grand Prix|FRA]]<br /><small>1</small>
| bgcolor="#cfcfff"| [[1931 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
|
|
! 4=
! 12
|-
| [[1932 Grand Prix season|1932]]
! [[Ettore Bugatti]]
! [[Bugatti]]
| bgcolor="#efcfff"| [[1932 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
| bgcolor="#dfffdf"| [[1932 French Grand Prix|FRA]]<br /><small>4</small>
| bgcolor="#ffcfcf"| [[1932 German Grand Prix|GER]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
|
|
! 5=
! 17
|-
| [[1935 Grand Prix season|1935]]
! [[Scuderia Ferrari]]
! [[Alfa Romeo in motorsport|Alfa Romeo]]
| bgcolor="#ffdf9f"| [[1935 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]<br /><small>3</small>
| bgcolor="#ffcfcf"| [[1935 German Grand Prix|GER]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
| bgcolor="#ffcfcf"| [[1935 Swiss Grand Prix|SUI]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
| [[1935 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]<br /><small></small>
| bgcolor="#dfffdf"| [[1935 Spanish Grand Prix|ESP]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
! 9=
! 29
|-
| [[1936 Grand Prix season|1936]]
! [[Daimler-Benz|Daimler-Benz AG]]
! [[Mercedes-Benz]]
| bgcolor="#ffcfcf"| '''[[1936 Monaco Grand Prix|MON]]'''<br /><small>Ret</small>
| bgcolor="#cfcfff"| [[1936 German Grand Prix|GER]]<br /><small>Ret</small>
| [[1936 Swiss Grand Prix|SUI]]<br /><small></small>
| [[1936 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]<br /><small></small>
|
! 18=
! 28
|}

==Complete World Championship Formula One results==
([[:Template:F1 driver results legend 2|key]]) (Races in '''bold''' indicate pole position)
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:95%"
! Year
! Entrant
! Chassis
! Engine
! 1
! 2
! 3
! 4
! 5
! 6
! 7
! 8
! 9
! 10
! 11
! WDC
! Pts.
|-
| {{F1|1950}}
! [[Maserati|Officine Alfieri Maserati]]
! [[Maserati]] [[Maserati 4CLT/48|4CLT/48]]
! [[Maserati]] [[straight-4|L4]][[supercharger|C]]
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1950 British Grand Prix|GBR]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| [[1950 Monaco Grand Prix|MON]]<br><small>3</small>
| [[1950 Indianapolis 500|500]]
|bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| [[1950 Swiss Grand Prix|SUI]]<br><small>9</small>
| [[1950 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1950 French Grand Prix|FRA]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1950 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|
|
|
|
! 10th
! 4
|-
|rowspan="2"| {{F1|1951}}
! [[Enrico Platé]]
! [[Maserati]] [[Maserati 4CLT/48|4CLT/48]]
! [[Maserati]] [[straight-4|L4]][[supercharger|C]]
|bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| [[1951 Swiss Grand Prix|SUI]]<br><small>7</small>
| [[1951 Indianapolis 500|500]]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
!rowspan="2"| NC
!rowspan="2"| 0
|-
! [[Ecurie Rosier]]
! [[Talbot-Lago]] [[Talbot-Lago T26C|T26C]]
! [[Talbot]] [[straight-6|L6]]
|
|
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1951 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| [[1951 French Grand Prix|FRA]]<br><small>6</small>
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1951 British Grand Prix|GBR]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1951 German Grand Prix|GER]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1951 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| [[1951 Spanish Grand Prix|ESP]]<br><small>Ret</small>
|
|
|
|-
| {{F1|1953}}
! Louis Chiron
! [[O.S.C.A.|OSCA]] [[OSCA 20|20]]
! [[O.S.C.A.|OSCA]] [[straight-6|L6]]
| [[1953 Argentine Grand Prix|ARG]]
| [[1953 Indianapolis 500|500]]
| [[1953 Dutch Grand Prix|NED]]
| [[1953 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]
|bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| [[1953 French Grand Prix|FRA]]<br><small>15</small>
|bgcolor="#FFFFFF"| [[1953 British Grand Prix|GBR]]<br><small>DNS</small>
| [[1953 German Grand Prix|GER]]
|bgcolor="#FFFFFF"| [[1953 Swiss Grand Prix|SUI]]<br><small>DNS</small>
|bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| [[1953 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]<br><small>10</small>
|
|
! NC
! 0
|-
| {{F1|1955}}
! [[Lancia in Formula One|Scuderia Lancia]]
! [[Lancia in Formula One|Lancia]] [[Lancia D50|D50]]
! [[Lancia in Formula One|Lancia]] [[V8 engine|V8]]
| [[1955 Argentine Grand Prix|ARG]]
|bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| [[1955 Monaco Grand Prix|MON]]<br><small>6</small>
| [[1955 Indianapolis 500|500]]
| [[1955 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]
| [[1955 Dutch Grand Prix|NED]]
| [[1955 British Grand Prix|GBR]]
| [[1955 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]
|
|
|
|
! NC
! 0
|-
| {{F1|1956}}
! [[Scuderia Centro Sud]]
! [[Maserati]] [[Maserati 250F|250F]]
! [[Maserati]] [[straight-6|L6]]
| [[1956 Argentine Grand Prix|ARG]]
|bgcolor="#FFFFFF"| [[1956 Monaco Grand Prix|MON]]<br><small>DNS</small>
| [[1956 Indianapolis 500|500]]
| [[1956 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]
| [[1956 French Grand Prix|FRA]]
| [[1956 British Grand Prix|GBR]]
| [[1956 German Grand Prix|GER]]
| [[1956 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]
|
|
|
! NC
! 0
|-
| {{F1|1958}}
! [[André Testut]]
! [[Maserati]] [[Maserati 250F|250F]]
! [[Maserati]] [[straight-6|L6]]
| [[1958 Argentine Grand Prix|ARG]]
|bgcolor="#FFCFCF"| [[1958 Monaco Grand Prix|MON]]<br><small>DNQ</small>
| [[1958 Dutch Grand Prix|NED]]
| [[1958 Indianapolis 500|500]]
| [[1958 Belgian Grand Prix|BEL]]
| [[1958 French Grand Prix|FRA]]
| [[1958 British Grand Prix|GBR]]
| [[1958 German Grand Prix|GER]]
| [[1958 Portuguese Grand Prix|POR]]
| [[1958 Italian Grand Prix|ITA]]
| [[1958 Moroccan Grand Prix|MOR]]
! NC
! 0
|}

== Rally wins ==
Monte Carlo Rally - 1954

== Legacy ==
Louis Chiron was so popular in [[Czechoslovakia]] whose Grand Prix he won three consecutive times that even after 75 years his name still lives in a popular saying "He drives likes Chiron", used mainly when referring to speeding motorists or generally to people who drive very fast.

==External links==
*[http://www.ddavid.com/formula1/chiron.htm Grand Prix History], Louis Chiron
*[http://www.carsandracingstuff.com/library/c/chironlouis.php Louis Chiron at The Crittenden Automotive Library]