Léon Théry
Léon Théry (born April 16, 1879 , † March 8, 1909 in Paris ) was a French racing car driver .
Life
Théry came into contact with motorsport as a mechanic, but soon got behind the wheel himself. His first appearance was the Paris – Bordeaux race in 1899 . By 1903 he achieved respectable results at Decauville , but not top results. This changed in 1904 when he switched to Richard-Brasier's team , which became Brasier in 1905 .
He knew like no other how to rely on constancy instead of daring speed. In the 1904 Gordon Bennett race , the time difference between his fastest and slowest lap was just three minutes - a brilliant achievement with a track length of 128 km. So he was able to win this race, a success that he repeated in the 1905 Gordon Bennett race .
Like other racing drivers of his era, he tried to set up his own brand, but the “Théry” car never got beyond the project phase. At the 1908 French Grand Prix he was seen again at the wheel of a Brazilian, but he was eliminated. This race was the last of his career, because in 1909 he died of tuberculosis at the age of 29 in Paris . He found his final resting place in the Père Lachaise cemetery .
Web links
- Léon Théry. www.motorsportmemorial.org, accessed on May 15, 2020 (English).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Théry, Léon |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French racing driver |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 16, 1879 |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 8, 1909 |
| Place of death | Paris |