Parijs-Madrid 1903

In the 1903 Paris-Madrid race, the last major and most disastrous race held on public roads, 216 teams lined up at the start. The driver and mechanic were entirely responsible for all repair and maintenance work on the cars during the long race, using only the tools and spare parts they had brought with them. No outside assistance of any kind was allowed, on pain of disqualification. During the first run of the day, after 320 km, Marcel Renault and Leon Thery were racing side by side when Renault swerved, hit a tree, and later died from his injuries; his mechanic was also seriously injured. The death of Marcel Renault was a heavy blow to the French automobile industry. The two brothers, Marcel and Louis, had founded the Renault factory in Billancourt in 1898. At the end of the day, only 38 of the 216 starters reached Bordeaux within the time limit. In view of the appalling number of accidents after just one day of racing, the French and Spanish authorities banned any further racing.