Sir John Whitmore was a British racing driver. Sir John was educated at Eton College

Eton College

Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....

, Sandhurst Royal Military Academy

Military academy

A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps of the army, the navy, air force or coast guard, which normally provides education in a service environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned.Three...

, and Cirencester Agricultural College. After racing, he went on to be a sports psychologist. He left working within motor-sports to apply his skills to the world of business. He now works as a management consultant, and is the executive chairman of the company Performance Consultants International. He has also written several books on performance coaching, as well as the biography for fellow racer, Jack Sears

Jack Sears

Jack Sears is a British former race and rally driver, and was one of the principal organisers of the 1968 London-Sydney Marathon. He was popularly known as "Gentleman Jack". His son David is also involved in motorsport....

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Inheritance

Sir John inherited The Orsett Estate Company at Orsett, Essex, from his father Sir Francis Henry Charlton Douglas Whitmore Bt. which included the family seat, Orsett Hall.

Racing career

In his first year in the competition, he became champion of the British Saloon Car Championship in his BMC Mini Minor. In 1963 he drove again in the BSCC. This time he finished second in the championship in a Mini Cooper, finishing just two points behind Jack Sears. Other racing included the 1965 European Touring Car Championship in a Lotus Cortina

Lotus Cortina

The Lotus-Cortina is a high-performance car, which was produced in the United Kingdom from 1963 to 1970 by the Ford in collaboration with Lotus Cars. The original version, which was based on the Ford Cortina Mark 1, was promoted by Ford as the "Consul Cortina developed by Lotus", with "Consul"...

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He drove in the 24 Hours of Le Mans

24 Hours of Le Mans

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...

 for five years between 1959-66. In the first year he finished second in class along with Jim Clark

Jim Clark

James "Jim" Clark, Jr OBE was a British Formula One racing driver from Scotland, who won two World Championships, in 1963 and 1965....

 in a Lotus Elite

Lotus Elite

Not to be confused with the Lotus Elise.The Lotus Elite name was used for two vehicles from Lotus Cars.-1957:The first Elite or Lotus Type 14 was an ultra-light two-seater coupé, produced from 1958 to 1963....

. In 1965 and 1966 he raced in a works Ford GT40, but was forced to retire from the race both years with mechanical problems. At the end of 1966 he retired from racing.

External links

• BTCC.net official driver profile.
• Daily Telegraph Interview on Le Mans
• Performance Consultants International where Sir John Whitmore is Executive Chairman and a coach.

! colspan="3" style="background: #99ff66;" | Sporting achievements