Born in Monte Carlo in 1901, Louis Chiron was one of the most successful drivers of the late 1920s and early 1930s.
Most of his early experience was gained with Bugatti cars and he achieved some notable successes. He won the German Grand Prix in 1929 and in 1933 both the Spanish and the French Grand Prix.
Chiron was regarded as a top driver, fast, cool and with
excellent judgment of race tactics. In 1935 he again won the French Grand Prix but was less successful in 1936
after joining Mercedes-Benz.
After World War Two Chiron reappeared at the wheel of a 1939 Talbot and with
this car he won the French Grand Prix of 1947.
The following year Talbot-Lago introduced an improved model and with one
of these, Chiron won the 1949 French Grand Prix. He is seen in that year's
British Grand Prix in which he retired because of a seized universal joint.
At the age of 54 he drove one of the new Lancia D50 cars in the 1955 Monaco Grand Prix and finished sixth. Later he became race director of the Monaco event.
