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Grand-Am boss Jim France Jr to give Le Mans 24 Hours start

Grand-Am boss Jim France Jr will give the start at the Le Mans 24 Hours next month

The invitation to France to wave off the cars at 3pm on June 22 follows a firming up of the relationship between United SportsCar Racing, which is being formed out of the merger of Grand-Am and the American Le Mans Series for next season, and the Automobile Club de l'Ouest at Le Mans.

It was announced in March that United SportsCar will be able to award two guaranteed entries for Le Mans in 2015 in a continuation of the link between the ALMS and the ACO.

France, son of NASCAR founder Bill France Sr, said: "I will be waving the flag to start next month's 24 Hours on behalf of the entire North American sportscar community.

"It demonstrates the universal interest in the consolidation of America's two leading road-racing organisations.

"The worldwide racing community is already anticipating the debut of United SportsCar Racing at the 2014 Daytona 24 Hours, with its close association to the ACO and link to Le Mans."

ACO president Pierre Fillon explained that the move "proves just how close the links are between the club that created endurance racing and the authorities of North American motorsports".

ALMS founder Don Panoz, who started the 2003 event, will symbolically hand over the flag to France ahead of the race.

Jim France Jr becomes the second member of the France family to wave the flag at Le Mans: his brother, Bill France Jr, was honorary starter in 1976.

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