At the beginning of the 80’s, car sports is going through one of the most prosperous periods in its history.
On the circuits of Formula 1, the pilots engage in spectacular duels at more than 300 kilometers per hour under the eye of television cameras. Once the race is over, they show off their good looks, trophies and glamor on the front pages of the magazines. Formula 1 has everything going for her: fame, glitz and money.
However, this supremacy will be shattered with the arrival of a new category of racing cars: “Groups B”.
On dirt, snow, asphalt, gravel, in the four corners of the world, the Groups B – rally vehicles with extraordinary power – rush, jump, slide and arouse immense popular enthusiasm.
The Eye of the Tiger Listen later
listen 47 min
Among the pilots who will write the most beautiful pages of this discipline, a large majority come from the Nordic countries – the press nicknames them “the flying Finns”. In the middle of this group of tall guys with blond hair, we find a French woman: she is a pilot, her name is Michèle Mouton.
From 1981 to 1986, Michele Mouton is going to be one of the stars of the World Rally Championship and one of the most famous faces of Group B – a discipline where the limits of reasonableness and safety will gradually disappear in favor of extreme performance and the obsession with victory.
A fantastic adventure that will come to a brutal and tragic end.
A documentary account ofAdrien Carat
thanks to William Montenont for documentation
Guest
Michele Moutondriver, vice-world rally champion, she is today a safety delegate within the International Automobile Federation (FIA).
Documentary Resources
Once Upon a Woman Listen later
listen 4 min
- 40 years ago, Riviera pilot Michèle Mouton was familiar with the summits. She tellsVar Matin, January 23, 2022
- Michèle Mouton: “We have never had girls at this level of stables », l’Equipe, September 19, 2020
- Michèle Mouton, on behalf of the fatherL’Equipe, October 30, 2015
- Motorsport, women remain out of racing, Le Figaro, 11/30/2013
- Woman at the wheel, Le Monde, June 13, 2015
Thanks to the Radio France documentation for its period file on Michele Mouton
Discography
- DEPECHE MODE Behind the wheel (1987)
- IZIA Metal Dragon (2019)
- PIERRE III Nonsense (2023)
Sports spirit Listen later
listen 2 min
2024-02-01 20:05:10
#Michèle #Mouton #Group #Flying #Finns
