“For me, this year is all about the 24 Hours of Le Mans,” explains nine-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen. He’s not wrong—2023 marks 100 years of the most famous—and most glamorous—endurance race in the world.
And as befits the event’s status as the world’s oldest endurance race, the winners this year won’t just get their names etched into the history books—they will also receive a special Rolex etched with their triumph.
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Rolex, sponsor of Le Mans since 2001 as the race’s ‘official timepiece,’ has created a specially engraved Cosmograph Daytona—a fitting watch, perhaps, taking its name from that other legendary endurance circuit that has played host to a number of US speed records. Indeed, “Daytona has greatly inspired the legend of this chronograph,” says Rolex.
First launched in 1963, the Cosmo Daytona promises exceptional reliability “under even the most challenging conditions” (one suspects sustained g-force in a 24-hour race qualifies), thanks to continued development of its mechanical heart. Originally a Valjoux movement, it changed in 1988 to a calibre 4030, then a Rolex 4130 calibre in 2000 and most recently a 4131 in 2023.
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And it’ll be handed out to 2023’s victors after what promises to be an absorbing race. Says 2009 Formula 1 champion Jenson Button, who’ll be there in a special Garage 56 entry: “It will be an incredible challenge and a privilege to be at the 100th anniversary of Le Mans in such an unusual car, alongside some of the greats of the sport.”
Kristensen added: “There is so much anticipation as we build to this momentous event. To triumph at the 24 Hours of Le Mans is the ultimate and the whole world will be watching.”
