MAY 25, 2006

The big parade

The Federation Francaise du Sport Automobile will be celebrating 100 years of Grand Prix racing with a display of historic Grand Prix cars on the streets of Paris on the weekend of June 3-4. A Grand Prix display will feature such famous cars as an early Renault, a Darracq and, of course, Bugattis plus some modern machinery as well. The display will highlight the evolution of Grand Prix automobile racing and honour the manufacturers involved.

At 11 o'clock on Sunday morning the cars will set off on a 5.5-mile parade through the streets of Paris, including the Champs l'Elysees, the Eiffel Tower, Les Invalides, the Trocadero and the Place de la Concorde. A number of celebrated drivers will be taking part in the event.

The first Grand Prix de l'Automobile Club de France took place at Le Mans on June 26-27 1906 and was won by a Renault driven by the Hungarian emigre Ferenc Szisz.