23émes Grand Prix d`Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans 1955

The 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 23rd Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 11 and 12, 1955. It was also the fourth round of the World Sportscar Championship.

This race saw the tragic death of 84 spectators and the injuring of over 100 more when Pierre Levegh's Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR was involved in an accident and flew into the crowd, killing the driver as well.

Shortly after the incident, the other two Mercedes vehicles in the race were withdrawn (in leading position).

This accident, the most catastrophic in motorsport's history, led to great changes in the measures taken to ensure the safety of drivers and spectators. Its fallout also led to many car manufacturers pulling out of motorsport (including Mercedes), and even the temporary outlawing of circuit racing in several countries.

Switzerland banned simultaneous competition between cars (i.e. except for hillclimbs), a ban which remains in place to this day.

Mike Hawthorn and Ivor Bueb, who were piloting the Jag, went on to a rather hollow victory - while it would take until 1988 for Mercedes to return to competitive racing, when they would join forces with the Swiss Sauber team in the Sports Prototype Championship, then lining up on the grid with its partner AMG in the German Touring Car Championship (DTM).

The 1955 accident led to widespread safety measures being brought into place not only at the circuit, but elsewhere in the motorsports world. However, even though the safety standards improved, so did the speeds of the cars. The move from open-cockpit roadsters to closed-cockpit coupes would help produce speeds over 320 km/h on the Mulsanne.