On 16th March 12001, at the 12 Hours of Sebring a road accident claimed the life of one of the great names in the history of endurance racing: Bob Wollek.

A ski champion (three university gold medals in 1968) Bob Wollek discovered motorsport after an accident that ended his career as a skier during the preparation of the Winter Olympics in Grenoble. In 1969, he started in Formula France. After climbing up to Formula 2, he reoriented his career towards sports cars. He became one of the great Porsche specialists, over an impressive career: four wins at the 24 Hours of Daytona, one in the 12 Hours of Sebring, two championship titles in Germany in Group 5. Possibly the greatest injustice is that despite thirty entries in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and standing on the podium six times, Bob Wollek never won in La Sarthe. He remained competitive and motivated to win the only major endurance race that had eluded him. As proof, he finished second in 1995, 1996 and 1998 when he was over fifty years old.

Besides his career as a skier, Bob Wollek was also a skilled and very keen cyclist. On 16th March 2001, after leaving the Sebring circuit to return to his hotel, his bike was in a collision with a motor home. Struck in the neck by the mirror on the vehicle, the French driver died instantly. Born on 4th November 1943 in Strasbourg, Bob Wollek was 57 years old. As a sign of respect, the Porsche 996 GT3 that was to race the 12 Hours of Sebring with Johnny Mowlem and Michael Petersen withdrew. The race was won by the Audi R8 Laurent Aiello, Rinaldo Capello and Michele Alboreto. The latter also died later that same year on 25th April 2001 on the Lauzitsring circuit (Germany), where he was conducting a test session. The 12 Hours of Sebring 2001 will remain marked by these sad memories.

Jean-Philippe Doret