British former Formula One racing driver from Scotland, Sir Jackie Stewart, is the epitome of a sportsman. Born in Dumbartonshire, Scotland, on June 11, 1939 into a family that sells cars and knows a lot about automobiles, Stewart would later become an apprentice mechanic in his father’s garage. In 1961, Stewart got an offer from a customer to test his cars at Oulton Park Circuit, a motor racing track in Cheshire, England. This became the spark that ignited his racing career.
Nicknamed the “Flying Scot,” Stewart steadily rose through the ranks in motor racing to become one of the sport’s most important figures ever. He won Formula One three times and broke several records while at it. However, the huge stress associated with racing all year round in several continents would affect Stewart’s health, making him retire in 1973. Nonetheless, the Flying Scot had done more than enough on and off the track to be ranked among motor-racing greats. Therefore, we bring you some interesting details about the iconic motor racer, Sir Jackie Stewart.
10 Amazing Shooter
Stewart is an amazing shooter. He was only 13 years old when he won his first clay pigeon shooting contest. He would later become a prize-winning member of the Scottish shooting team, representing his country in several shooting competitions abroad as well as in the United Kingdom.
Notably, Stewart twice won the “Coupe de Nations” European championship, and he also won the Scottish, Welsh, Irish, and British skeet shooting championships. However, at 23 years old, Stewart retired from shooting.
9 School Dropout
At 12 years old, just after he had finished his primary education at the Hartfield primary school in Dumbarton, Stewart enrolled at the Dumbarton Academy to further his education. But schooling was never Stewart’s forte. He had severe studying difficulty and was always mocked for it by his peers and his teachers as well.
He was said to be slow at learning and was called “dumb” and “thick.” The condition never improved, hence, at 16 years old, Stewart dropped out of school.
8 First Car
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Having to stop school, Stewart resumed work in his father’s garage as an apprentice mechanic. A year after, he had saved enough money from the tips he got from working in the garage to buy himself a light green Austin A30 that cost him about $520.
This was Stewarts first ever car and he bought it shortly before his seventeenth birthday. Amazingly, Stewart was able to recall the event some 60 years after, during an interview.
7 Married His Childhood Sweetheart
Marrying a childhood sweetheart is never an easy feat due to a plethora of reasons, but Stewart somehow pulled it off. In August 1962, he got married to his childhood friend Helen McGregor (now Lady Stewart). Notably, Stewart had not even started his racing career by then, as McGregor had married him only as a clay pigeon shooter.
The couple has two sons, Paul and Mark Stewart. Paul Stewart had a short stint as a racing driver, while Mark Stewart is into film and television production.
6 Undiagnosed Dyslexia
Unknown to Stewart and his parents, he had lived most of his life with undiagnosed dyslexia. This reading disorder was the reason he couldn’t cope with school, suffered great humiliation, and had to eventually drop out. Unfortunately, Stewart unknowingly lived with the condition until 1980 when his eldest son was diagnosed with dyslexia.
Seeing the similarities in his son’s condition with that of his younger self, Stewart requested a test. The result confirmed his suspicion, as he was eventually diagnosed with dyslexia, at 41 years old.
5 First Championship Win
Having shunned brightly at Formula Three and Formula Two, Stewart, along with Graham Hill, signed for British Racing Motors (BRM) in 1965. He drove for Lotus in his first F1 race as a replacement for injured Jim Clark.
Subsequently, Stewart made his World Championship F1 debut in South Africa in 1965 as well, and he had his first Grand Prix win at Monza in the same year. Notably, Stewart would eventually become a world F1 champion for the first time in the 1969 season.
4 Knighthood
Jackie Stewart has been honored several times. Although he couldn’t complete his education, however, Stewart was awarded an Honorary Professorship from the University of Stirling. In addition, he has received more than eight Honorary Doctorates from several universities located in the United States, Scotland, and England.
The Kings of Jordan and Bahrain also gave Stewart honorary awards. To crown it all, Stewart was awarded an OBE in 1972, and he got his knighthood in 2001, all for his contribution to motorsports.
3 Owned An F1 Team
Although he had made his mark as a racer, however, Stewart returned to Formula One in 1997 with the Stewart Grand Prix, as a team owner in partnership with his son, Paul Stewart. Founded in 1996, the team competed in F1 as the Ford works-supported team from 1997 to 1999.
Impressively, during the 1999 season, the team had one win and one pole position before finishing as the fourth overall best team at the Constructors Championship. At the end of the season, Ford bought the team and renamed it Jaguar Racing.
2 Owns A Charity Organization
Lady Helen Stewart was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2016. This makes her have limited short-term memory and impaired mobility, thereby needing continuous care and support. However, this development prompted Stewart to set up the charity Race Against Dementia in 2018.
Primarily, the organization raises money to fund breakthrough and innovative dementia research. Stewart believes that applying F1 technology and out-of-the-box thinking could provide timely succor to the dementia society.
1 Racing Safety Advocate
Stewart described the conditions he met Grand Prix racing’s precautions and safety measures as “diabolical,” and he couldn’t have described it better. Notably, he became a staunch racing safety advocate after his 165 mph crash in heavy rain while racing at the Spa-Francorchamps in 1966, with no proper medical emergency team.
Having survived the ordeal, Stewart, against strong oppositions, almost single-handedly successfully campaigned for improved safety measures which include the introduction of full-face helmets and seatbelts for drivers, Grand Prix medical unit, and safety barriers, among others.