Odette Siko


Odette Siko was a French auto racing driver, who competed in endurance and rally racing during the 1920s and 1930s. At the 1932 24 Hours of Le Mans, she won the 2 Liter class and finished in fourth place overall, becoming the highest placing female driver in the event's history. Siko competed in three more Le Mans 24 hour races.

Auto racing career

Siko began competing occasionally in the late 1920s. She became the highest-ranked woman competitor to date in the 24 Hours of Le Mans when she placed fourth overall in the 1932 edition, for a total of 4 entries: 1930, 1931, 1932, and 1933.
From 1933, her career leaned more towards rallies and participating in the Paris-Saint-Raphaël women's race with Hellé Nice, and in 1935 at the Monte Carlo Rally. In 1936 she drove a Bugatti during the Critérium de Paris-Nice,.
In 1937, she participated in speed trials for ten days on the ring circuit of Montlhery on behalf Yacco motor oils, as "road captain" of four women, including Helle Nice Simone of Forest and Claire Descollas, who then defeated 25 world records in an atmosphere that was sometimes difficult between them. They went through more than 30,000 km at an average speed of 140 km / h. Their vehicle was a Ford "Matford" Mathis 3600 cm3 V8 engine nicknamed "Claire" by the team's mechanics.
In 1939, still driving the "Matford", she returned a second time in Monte-Carlo, with Louise Lamberjack for copilot: Starting from Tallinn, the two women ended the race 18th, after a very rough start to the year. The Second World War finally interrupted her career in racing.