1929: Nice in her Bugatti 35C at Montlhery

Helle Nice (Mariette Helene Delangle)

Country: France

Birth/Death: 15 December 1900-1 October 1984

Facts:

• Nice was a dancer and model who used the stage name "Helene Nice" which became "Helle Nice"
• She hurt her knee in a skiing accident which ended her dancing career
• 1929: Won an all-female Grand Prix race at Autodrome de Montlhéry, driving an Omega-Six
• That race set a new land speed record for women
• 1930: She raced at various tracks in America in a Miller
• 1931: Raced a Bugatti Type 35C in Grand Prix in France and at Monza in Italy
• She competed in Grand Prix, Hillclimbs and Rallies
• 1936: She had a terrible accident at the Sao Paolo Grand Prix in Brazil.
• The details are not clear but she crashed and her Alfa Romeo went into the crowd killing 4 and injuring others.
• She was thrown and landed on a soldier, who died. She was in a coma for several days but survived

Controversy was what ultimately ended Nice’s racing career. In 1949, during the first Monte Carlo Rally since WWII had ended, fellow driver louis Chiron publicly accused Nice of being an agent for the Gestapo during the war. Although his claims were not proven, Nice reputation was tarnished. She lost sponsors and was alienated by friends and never raced again.

In 2004, Bugatti Queen, a biography of Nice, was published. Author Miranda Seymour does a wonderful job of chronicling Nice’s incredible roller coaster life.