Monday 21st February 1944

The winner of the first grand prix motor race Ferenc Szizs died in France aged 60. He was a locksmith by trade but joined Renault as an engineer in 1900. He quickly rose through the ranks to the manufacturer’s testing department, and after riding as mechanic for Louis Renault, became a racing driver. In 1906 he won the first French Grand Prix at Le Mans with an average speed of 62.9 mph. He competed in a handful of other grand prix before setting up his own garage in 1909. He fought in World War I and caught typhoid while serving in Algeria. He later worked for an aircraft company before retiring to the countryside just outside Paris.