24 Hours of Le Mans: Nine-time winner Tom Kristensen looks back on successes as 2023 race approaches – Power of Sport

Nine-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans Tom Kristensen says there is “nowhere like” the famous race, as he shared his reflections on his successes as part of Eurosport’s Power of Sport series.

Kristensen’s first victory at Le Mans came in 1997 with his final one in 2013, and the Dane still holds the record for the most wins in the world’s oldest active endurance racing event.

He won six of those nine races in consecutive years, from 2000 to 2005, competing for different teams along the way including Team Bentley, Audi Sport and Team BMW Motorsport.

This year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans takes place between 10-11 June, as Toyota eye a sixth straight triumph.

“Sometimes I went with my dad. He was a racing driver. grew up running, playing around in the paddock of the circuits around Denmark, so I’m literally born into it, I think you can say.

“Le Mans is very special. You see and feel the whole city is attracted to it, people travelling from all around the world. You feel the history of the place. I found it the ultimate challenge you can do as a racing driver.

“You always expect the unexpected and always, there are a lot of these things along the journey, to the chequered flag, it’s 24 hours night and day.

“I was only called four days before my debut in 1997. The wins with Audi: 2000, 2001, 2002. Actually, I won the next six years. I learned a lot from all of them.

“2003 was with Bentley. Most elegant racing car I’ve ever driven.

“2005, I believe that’s probably the race where I was the strongest of all. And actually, that was the year when I surpassed Jacky Ickx’s record (of six Le Mans wins).

“Late in the evening, completely destroyed, physically and mentally, I listened to my answering machine. “Congratulations, you deserve it,” from Jacky. That was cool.

“2008. That Le Mans was an epic battle. The lead changes created so much drama. And yes, correctly, a lot of people called that the best-ever Le Mans.

“My last Le Mans win was 2013, and we were less than an hour into the race when there was an accident with a friend of mine. The great Dane, Allan Simonsen.

“I knew before I got in the car, I knew that he didn’t make it.

“I had lost my father earlier that year. Before I got in the car, I had to sort of imagine I had a coffee with my father, and I’m seeing him pointing now to Allan and saying: ‘now, you better win for him. Now it’s him, you win for him.’

“It was a great race, and Allan was absolutely a great Dane.

“It’s special standing on the podium, just seeing the people gathered. For any driver, winning at Le Mans, it’s a dream. And when it becomes reality, you are absolutely proud, you are really, really happy.

“There’s nowhere like it.”

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On June 10 and 11 strap yourself in for a live sport rollercoaster ride. With the finals of Roland-Garros, 24 Hours of Le Mans, Speedway Grand Prix, the UCI Mountain Bike World Series, the Criterium du Dauphine, MotoGP and the Champions League final, it’s the Weekend of Champions live on Eurosport, discovery+ and BT Sport.