The hundredth edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is from Ferrari. After an absence of fifty years, the Italian team returns and wins the historic car race, forty-eight years after the last success.
There was a win for three drivers – two Italians, Alessandro Pier Guidi and Antonio Giovinazzi, and one British, James Calado – who took the team’s title aboard the 499P in front of the Toyotas of Buemi–Hartley–Hirakawa. for five consecutive years. An incredible edition, therefore, of 2024, which will also go down in history thanks to the extraordinary “godfather”.
In fact, this year NBA and Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James took care of inaugurating the legendary car race. The leading scorer in league history was the third American to play as a starter, following Steve McQueen in 1971 and Brad Pitt in 2016. The centenary of one of the biggest sporting events in the world”, declared James during the opening ceremony, adding, “This is a prestigious race, in which drivers compete at the highest level”.
Naturally, after waving the French tricolor emblazoned with the number 100 in gold, LeBron opened the race by saying a few words in the local language. The Lakers star then mocked his accent, declaring himself as «LeFrench James» on his social media channels. A champion in field and communication, after a career of 20 years, it is now established.