24 hours of goosebumps, 24 hours of nerve-wracking excitement, the 24 Hours of Le Mans - the endurance race on the Sarthe celebrates its 100th anniversary next year. From April 1, 2023, the Technik Museum Sinsheim will be dedicating the special exhibition "One hundred years of the 24 Hours of Le Mans" to this special occasion on 3000 m2 of exhibition space in the newly designed Hall 3. Around 30 racing cars from the early days to the present day will form the core of the exhibition until January 2024 - including a Porsche 919 from 2015, a Lorraine-Dietrich B3-6 from 1926, a Ford GT 40 from 1966 and a Triumph TRS 1961. "We are proud that we were able to win over painter and museum member Uli Ehret for this project, who has been helping to write and draw Le Mans history for over 20 years," says museum president Hermann Layher about the collaboration.
"You don't win Le Mans - Le Mans lets you win. The myth of the 24 Hours will present the fascination and history of the endurance classic in a unique exhibition," says co-creator Uli Ehret, summarizing the upcoming special exhibition at the Technik Museum Sinsheim. Grouped by decade, the museum will present these important vehicles in racing groups on a specially installed "race track". In the middle of the exhibition are 40 columns suspended from the ceiling, which use photographs, paintings and texts to tell both adults and children exciting stories about the 100 years of the "Grand Prix d ́Endurance". Watercolors by Le Mans enthusiast Uli Ehret and historical photographs accompany the exhibition on oversized banners all around and reflect the atmosphere of the hunt through day and night in racing scenes. Visitors can experience the loud roar of the engines and the glow of the glistening orange-red brake disks on screens during the night at Le Mans.
German racing drivers, teams and sports car brands have celebrated the "Le Mans legend" and numerous victories on the French race track. Every year, hundreds of thousands of spectators and fans from all over the world make the pilgrimage to the technical metropolis of Le Mans to experience the race and the special atmosphere up close. An experience similar to the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.
The exhibition "One hundred years of the 24 Hours of Le Mans" recreates exactly this feeling. "Personally, I'm looking forward to the younger cars from the last 20 years. This segment of competition vehicles is less represented in museums. The special exhibition will also be interesting and worth seeing for some Le Mans fans of the younger generation," says museum president Hermann Layher, who has already been behind the wheel at Le Mans Classic, with conviction.
All information on the upcoming special exhibition "One hundred years of the 24 Hours of Le Mans" can be found on the museum's website.
