The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an annual 24-hour automobile endurance race organised by the automotive group Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and held on the Circuit de la Sarthe race track close to the city of Le Mans, the capital of the French department of Sarthe. It was first staged as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency in , after the automotive journalist Charles Faroux, the ACO general secretary Georges Durand and the industrialist Emile Coquile agreed to hold the race for car manufacturers to test vehicle durability, equipment and reliability. From the first event in 1923, the ACO advocated sexual equality by permitting women to participate at Le Mans, ranking them equally with men under its performance standards. After the fatal accident of at the 1956 12 Hours of Reims as well as spectator deaths in the 1955 Le Mans disaster and the 1957 Mille Miglia, the ACO barred women from entry. The restriction was lifted two months before the race, possibly due to the women's liberation movement reaching French motorsport.
there have been 68 female drivers representing 15 countries who have started the race a total of 165 times and have finished on 93 occasions. Anny-Charlotte Verney of France holds the record for the most starts in the race with ten. Switzerland's Rahel Frey is second with eight starts and Belgian Vanina Ickx is third with seven starts. The first two female drivers to compete at the event were Marguerite Mareuse and Odette Siko in . France is the most represented country, having produced 24 female participants, followed by the United Kingdom with 17 female drivers and Belgium with five female racers. Colombia and the Netherlands became the latest countries to be represented when Tatiana Calderón and Beitske Visser made their debuts in . The two most recent women to make their Le Mans debuts were Jamie Chadwick and Célia Martin in 2025.
Since the first race in 1923, there have been 31 all-female squads, consisting of either two or three drivers. There have been two all-female teams who have won their class. The first all-female crew to win their category was the "Christine" – Ecurie Seiko team of Christine Beckers, Yvette Fontaine and Marie Laurent in the 1974 edition and the second was the Société Esso trio of , and Michèle Mouton in the 1975 race. The race to feature the highest number of all-female squads was the 1935 event featuring four teams. The highest overall finish by an individual woman at Le Mans was achieved by Siko, who came fourth in the 1932 edition. The best performing all-female team was the seventh-placed Mme Mareuse duo of Maruese and Siko in the 1930 race.
Drivers By name +Key 1 Number in the best finish column denotes a driver's highest finish DNF Did not finish NC Not classified
+24 Hours of Le Mans female drivers by name Country Name Years Starts 1–440212–2701031000410005, , 30006100071130008–, 3130009–, –51200010–20001112400012, 2140001312500014125000151260001612600017116000181160001910002019381000211937–19393120012211300023, 200024100025100026–2150002711500028–61200129–, –41100130–10601131–2110013211700133, 2130003412100035–4200013612100137, –, 42100138–, 41100039100040100041–, 3701042–200043, 200044100045–415 ()00046–, 4901047–, 41300048, , , –7701049–200050–31900051100052, 21100053100054, –83000055201112600056–31400057–33100058100059–63000060–23400061 –21300062 –31300063 –21300064 –53000065 –, –41300066 , 200067 100068 149000
By country +24 Hours of Le Mans female drivers by country Country First Drivers Starts Top 10 Class Win France19302459410 United Kingdom1931172100 Belgium195441811 Switzerland199341510 United States19844800 Italy19753700 Japan19922700 Denmark20162900 Germany19972700 Canada19341300 South Africa19821310 Australia19351200 Colombia20201200 Netherlands20201200 Venezuela20011200
All-women teams
+Key 1 Number denotes team's class and overall finishing position DNF Did not finish DSQ Disqualified
+Class abbreviations 1.1 1.1-litre 1.5 1.5-litre 3.0 3.0-litre 750 750 cc S 1.1 Sports 1100 S 2.0 Sports 2000 GT Grand touring GTP Grand Touring Prototype Gr.6 3.0 Group 6 S Sports 3-litre C1 Group C1 LMGT1 Le Mans Group GT1 LMP2 Le Mans Prototype 2 Group GT3 Le Mans Grand Touring Car LMGTE Am Le Mans Grand Touring Amateur
+24 Hours of Le Mans all-female teams Year Team Drivers Category Car Mme Mareuse Bugatti T 40 7 2 Mme Mareuse Bugatti T 40 Hon. Mrs. Chetwynd MG C-Type Midget Miss D. Champney Riley Ulster IMP 13 5 Captain G. E. T. Eyston MG PA Midget 24 9 Captain G. E. T. Eyston MG PA Midget 25 10 Captain G. E. T. Eyston MG PA Midget 26 11 Riley Motor Company Riley Nine MPH Six Racing G. E. T. Eyston MG PB Midget 16 4 Mmes Roux et Rouault Amilcar "Pegase Special" G36 Mme. A. Itier Simca Huit Rouault et Gordine Simca-Gordini TMM Luigi Chinetti Ferrari 166 MM Coupé 15 3 Écurie Seiko-Scato Chevron B 23 17 1 Anny-Charlotte Verney Porsche 911 Carrera RS 11 6 Société Esso Moynet LM75211 Elf Switzerland Renault Alpine A441 Aseptogyl Lancia Stratos Turbo 20 2 Inaltera Inaltera LM77 11 4 Team Esso Aseptogyl Lancia Stratos Turbo WM A.E.R.E.M. / Team Esso Aseptogyl WM P76-Peugeot Euro Racing/A.O. Racing Spice SE90C-Ford Matech Competition Ford GT Kessel Racing Ferrari 488 GTE 39 9 Iron Lynx Ferrari 488 GTE Evo 34 9 Richard Mille Racing Team Oreca 07 13 9 Iron Lynx Ferrari 488 GTE Evo 36 9 Richard Mille Racing Team Oreca 07 Iron Dames Ferrari 488 GTE Evo 40 7 Iron Dames Porsche 911 RSR-19 30 4 Iron Dames Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2 32 5 Iron Dames Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) 49 16
See also List of female Formula One drivers List of female Indianapolis 500 drivers List of female NASCAR drivers List of female racing drivers
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