Automobile race.
It is perhaps the best-known automobile race in the world, run annually (with few exceptions) since 1923 at the Sarthe road-racing circuit, near Le Mans, France. The winner is the car that travels the greatest distance in a 24-hour period. The racing circuit is 8.3 mi (13.4 km) long, and the race is open only to sports cars (see sports-car racing ).