Romolo Tavoni facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Romolo Tavoni
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Tavoni (2nd from right) in 1961
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| Born | 30 January 1926 Formigine, Kingdom of Italy
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| Died | 20 December 2020 (aged 94) Casinalbo, Italy
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| Nationality | Italian |
| Occupation | Sports Executive |
Romolo Tavoni (born January 30, 1926 – died December 20, 2020) was an important Italian sports manager. He was most famous for his work with the legendary car company, Ferrari.
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Romolo Tavoni's Early Life
Romolo Tavoni was born on January 30, 1926. His hometown was Formigine, a small place near Modena in Italy. He started his career working as an accountant at a bank called Credito Italiano.
Joining the Ferrari Team
In January 1950, something exciting happened. Romolo's bank manager introduced him to Enzo Ferrari. Enzo Ferrari was the famous founder of the Ferrari car company. Soon after their meeting, Ferrari hired Romolo Tavoni to be his personal secretary.
Working at Ferrari
In 1951, Enzo Ferrari sent Romolo Tavoni on an important trip. He went to the Indianapolis 500 race in the United States. His job was to study how the race cars were prepared. Ferrari wanted to know if his company should join this famous race in the future.
Romolo wrote a report with his findings. He suggested that Ferrari cars would need stronger wheel hubs. This was because of the special banked corners on the oval track. But Ferrari's engineers did not follow his advice. In 1952, Alberto Ascari had to stop his Ferrari after only a few laps. One of his wheel hubs broke, just as Romolo had warned.
Becoming Sporting Director
In 1957, Romolo Tavoni got a big promotion. He became the sporting director for Scuderia Ferrari. This meant he was in charge of all the racing teams. He oversaw their activities in Formula One, sports car racing, and the European Hill Climb Championship.
One of his first races in this new role was the 1957 Mille Miglia. This event was sadly marked by a serious accident. It involved Ferrari drivers Alfonso de Portago and Edmund Nelson. The accident led to the race being cancelled.
Romolo Tavoni was also involved in a disagreement with racing driver Jean Behra. After a race in France, Behra had a heated discussion about his retirement from the race. This led to a physical confrontation between Behra, Tavoni, and another person.
Ferrari's Winning Years
Romolo Tavoni had his most successful years as sporting director in 1958 and 1961. During these years, two Ferrari drivers won the Formula One World Championship. Mike Hawthorn won in 1958, and Phil Hill won in 1961. These were big wins for Ferrari and for Romolo's team.
Leaving Ferrari
At the end of the 1961 racing season, Romolo Tavoni left Ferrari. He was fired by Enzo Ferrari during what was called the "great walkout". Several other important people also left Ferrari at the same time. These included Carlo Chiti and Giotto Bizzarrini. Eugenio Dragoni took over Romolo's job as team manager.
Life After Ferrari
After leaving Ferrari, Romolo Tavoni continued his work in motorsports. He worked for a company called ATS. He also worked for the CSAI, which is the Italian Motor Sports Commission.
In 1965, Romolo Tavoni and Luigi Bertett created something new. They started "Formula Monza." This was a special racing series for young and new racing drivers. It helped them get started in the sport. Later, Romolo became the director of racing at the famous Autodromo Nazionale di Monza racetrack. He worked full-time at Monza until 1992. He then continued to work part-time until he was about 80 years old.
Later Life and Passing
After fully retiring, Romolo Tavoni lived in Casinalbo, a town near Modena. He passed away on December 20, 2020, at the age of 94.
