Germany came to be known as the birthplace is fine automobiles, and France for the racing of them. Both came partially by way of the United States: James Gordon Bennett, Jr., the millionaire owner of the New York Herald newspaper offered the Automobile Club of France, a gentleman’s organization devoted to luxury and sport, an annual racing event for a prize offered by Bennett. Four years later, those races would be staged independently by the ACF, founding the tradition of auto racing that lives on still.

On this day, June 26, in 1906 the Automobile Club of France held the first Grand Prix race on the closed streets of Le Mans, France. The track chosen was a 64-mile looped course that each competitor had to circle six times in each of the two days of competition.

France had the largest automobile industry at the time of the race, and a French car did indeed come in first. The prestige the Renault car manufacturer gained from winning the race boosted sales from 1,600 cars in 1906 to more than 3,000 the following, and more than 4,600 in 1908. But any celebrations were premature: an Italian Fiat finished second, and of the twenty-three French cars that started the race only seven finished.