Albert Champion (cyclist)
Encyclopedia
Albert Champion was a French
road bicycle racer, who won the 1899 Paris–Roubaix. In 1908 he founded the Champion Ignition Company
to make spark plugs in Flint
, Michigan
. In 1909 the name changed to AC Spark Plug Company, after Champion's initials.
rider.
The historian Pierre Chany
says Champion went to America after his win to profit from track contracts and to escape conscription
, which could have meant up to seven years in the army. There he raced behind motorcycles and against riders such as Jimmy Michael
, leading a comfortable life, enough that he could buy a racing car and take part in competitions. "He had contracted the car virus," said the historian Pascal Sergent.
He crashed in a race and spent months in hospital, leaving with one leg two centimetres shorter than the other. By then, Champion had opened a factory to make spark plugs. He returned to France to raise more money for it. Coping with his shortened leg by using cranks of different lengths, he won a 50 km race on the Buffalo track in Paris and in 1904 became national motor-paced champion on the Parc des Princes
track by beating specialists such as Parent, Contenet and the "blond Adonis", Émile Bouhours. The race reopened the injury to his leg and he was taken to hospital at Boucicaut. He was in his hospital bed when he saw a fellow rider, Brecy, brought in with injuries collected in a crash at 90 km/h. The experience ended Champion's racing career.
riders, who were accustomed to them. The race took place on a still day, 2 April, with 32 riders. They included the prominent road riders, Maurice Garin
and Josef Fischer
but also track specialists such as Champion, Émile Bohours and Paul Bor. What they gained through experience in paced riding, they lost in inexperience of the cobbles and other bad road surfaces that constituted Paris–Roubaix.
Champion, 21, was an outsider but the others chased when he broke away alone soon after the start. Only Bouhours could come close to catching him, getting to within a minute at Amiens
, at half distance. But Bouhours' hope of catching him ended when his pacer hit a spectator crossing the road. Champion slowed through hunger near Arras
, riding the worst of the cobbles at walking speed, but at the velodrome in Roubaix
he still had 23 minutes on Bor and Ambroise Garin, brother of Maurice.
Champion finished in 8h 22m 53s, slow by comparison to Maurice Garin, who won the 1898 race in 10 minutes less despite bad weather.
(GM products) and Champion spark plugs sold by Federal-Mogul
.
Champion died on 27 October 1927. General Motors
bought all the company by acquiring shares held by Champion's estate.
during a banquet in Paris. He was being honoured for making the spark plugs that helped Charles Lindbergh
cross the Atlantic alone that year.
He left 15 million dollars. Alfred P. Sloan, president of General Motors, said: “The keynote of Champion's success was, that he was never satisfied...his mind was open to the necessity for constant improvement.”
Champion is buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris.
1904
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
road bicycle racer, who won the 1899 Paris–Roubaix. In 1908 he founded the Champion Ignition Company
Champion (spark plug)
Champion is an American brand of spark plugs.Originally Champion was a Fortune 500 Company founded by Robert A. Stranahan and Frank D. Stranahan in 1908 in Boston, MA and then moved to Toledo, OH in 1910 to be close to the Willys-Overland Auto Company....
to make spark plugs in Flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. In 1909 the name changed to AC Spark Plug Company, after Champion's initials.
Cycling
Albert Champion was a talented racing cyclist at the end of the 19th century. His win in Paris–Roubaix (see below) came as a surprise because he had been known as a velodromeVelodrome
A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights...
rider.
The historian Pierre Chany
Pierre Chany
Pierre Chany was a French cycling journalist. He covered the Tour de France 49 times and was for a long time the main cycling writer for the daily newspaper, L'Équipe.- Biography :...
says Champion went to America after his win to profit from track contracts and to escape conscription
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
, which could have meant up to seven years in the army. There he raced behind motorcycles and against riders such as Jimmy Michael
Jimmy Michael
Jimmy Michael , was a Welsh world cycling champion and one of the top riders in the sport for several years.-Origins:...
, leading a comfortable life, enough that he could buy a racing car and take part in competitions. "He had contracted the car virus," said the historian Pascal Sergent.
He crashed in a race and spent months in hospital, leaving with one leg two centimetres shorter than the other. By then, Champion had opened a factory to make spark plugs. He returned to France to raise more money for it. Coping with his shortened leg by using cranks of different lengths, he won a 50 km race on the Buffalo track in Paris and in 1904 became national motor-paced champion on the Parc des Princes
Parc des Princes
The Parc des Princes is an all-seater football stadium located in the southwest of Paris, France. The venue, with a seating capacity of 48,712 spectators, has been the home of French football club Paris Saint-Germain since 1974. The current Parc des Princes was inaugurated on 4 June 1972, endowed...
track by beating specialists such as Parent, Contenet and the "blond Adonis", Émile Bouhours. The race reopened the injury to his leg and he was taken to hospital at Boucicaut. He was in his hospital bed when he saw a fellow rider, Brecy, brought in with injuries collected in a crash at 90 km/h. The experience ended Champion's racing career.
Paris–Roubaix
The 1899 Paris–Roubaix was paced by small motorcycles. That was attractive to velodromeVelodrome
A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights...
riders, who were accustomed to them. The race took place on a still day, 2 April, with 32 riders. They included the prominent road riders, Maurice Garin
Maurice Garin
Maurice-Francois Garin was a road bicycle racer best known for winning the inaugural Tour de France in 1903, and for being stripped of his title in the second Tour in 1904 along with eight others, for cheating.-Origins:Garin was born the son of Maurice Clément Garin and Maria Teresa...
and Josef Fischer
Josef Fischer (cyclist)
Josef Fischer was a German road bicycle racer. He is best known for winning the first edition of Paris–Roubaix in 1896 and Bordeaux–Paris in 1900.- Major achievements :189618991900...
but also track specialists such as Champion, Émile Bohours and Paul Bor. What they gained through experience in paced riding, they lost in inexperience of the cobbles and other bad road surfaces that constituted Paris–Roubaix.
Champion, 21, was an outsider but the others chased when he broke away alone soon after the start. Only Bouhours could come close to catching him, getting to within a minute at Amiens
Amiens
Amiens is a city and commune in northern France, north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in Picardy...
, at half distance. But Bouhours' hope of catching him ended when his pacer hit a spectator crossing the road. Champion slowed through hunger near Arras
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
, riding the worst of the cobbles at walking speed, but at the velodrome in Roubaix
Roubaix
Roubaix is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is located between the cities of Lille and Tourcoing.The Gare de Roubaix railway station offers connections to Lille, Tourcoing, Antwerp, Ostend and Paris.-Culture:...
he still had 23 minutes on Bor and Ambroise Garin, brother of Maurice.
Champion finished in 8h 22m 53s, slow by comparison to Maurice Garin, who won the 1898 race in 10 minutes less despite bad weather.
Motor products
Champion became interested in cars and car racing while he was in the USA. He moved back to France to make spark plugs and magnetos. He returned to America in the early 1900s, establishing the Champion Spark Plug Company in Boston. In 1908, after a disagreement with his Boston backers, he left the company and moved to Flint, Michigan, where he founded Champion Ignition Company. His first office was on the top floor of Buick factory 1. The company was incorporated in October 1908 and changed name a year later, following a legal challenge by his former company, to AC Spark Plug Company, after Champion's initials. To this day, both names survive as ACDelcoDelco Electronics
Delco Electronics Corporation was the automotive electronics design and manufacturing subsidiary of General Motors based in Kokomo, Indiana.The name Delco came from the Dayton Engineering Laboratories Co., founded in Dayton, Ohio by Charles Kettering and Edward A...
(GM products) and Champion spark plugs sold by Federal-Mogul
Federal-Mogul
Federal-Mogul Corporation is a global automotive supplier based in Southfield, Michigan, USA. It is one of the leading engine-parts suppliers in the United States, including engine bearings, pistons, piston pins, piston rings, cylinder liners, valve seats and guides, transmission products and...
.
Champion died on 27 October 1927. General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
bought all the company by acquiring shares held by Champion's estate.
Personal life and death
Champion was married when he went to the USA but the marriage didn't last. In 1922 he married a girl in show business. In 1927, he collapsed and died of a heart attack while escorting his wife to the dance floor of the Hotel MeuriceHotel Meurice
Le Meurice is a 5-star hotel in Paris, located opposite the Tuileries Garden, between Place de la Concorde and the Musée du Louvre. This hotel is owned and managed by the Dorchester Collection...
during a banquet in Paris. He was being honoured for making the spark plugs that helped Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
cross the Atlantic alone that year.
He left 15 million dollars. Alfred P. Sloan, president of General Motors, said: “The keynote of Champion's success was, that he was never satisfied...his mind was open to the necessity for constant improvement.”
Champion is buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris.
Palmarès
1899- 1st, Paris–Roubaix
1904
- 1st, French National Stayers ChampionshipsFrench National Stayers ChampionshipsThe French National Stayers Championships are held annually. The stayers event is often known as motor-paced, it is held on a cycling track, the riders follow a derny throughout the race, the rider of the derny is known as their pacer...