Sid Watkins
Eric Sidney Watkins OBE ( born September 6, 1928 in Liverpool, United Kingdom; † 12 September 2012 in London), also commonly known as Professor Sid, was a British neurosurgeon, the 1978-2004 official chief physician of the FIA for Formula 1 race was.
Life
Start time
Watkins studied medicine at the University of Liverpool and graduated in 1952. Then spent five years with the Royal Army Medical Corps in West Africa, but returned immediately on return to the UK to specialize at the University of Oxford on neurosurgery. At this time he began to be interested in motorsports and worked in his spare time as a race doctor on the Silverstone Circuit.
Watkins went to Syracuse to professor of neurosurgery at the State University of New York to become. However, he soon returned to England and became chief of neurosurgery at the London Hospital.
Formula 1 career
In 1978 he met Bernie Ecclestone, who was at that time manager of the Brabham team and Watkins offered to take over the post as the official Formula 1 race doctor. Watkins took the items and the FIA recognized over the years that he had a large part in the modernization of the medical standards of Formula 1. As chief physician Watkins sat at every race or race weekend in the Medical Car. In free practice session for the Australian Grand Prix in 1995, the season finale in Adelaide, had to make a tracheotomy before place race doctor Sid Watkins with the heavy casualties Mika Häkkinen.
On 20 January 2004 Watkins announced his resignation from all medical items of the FIA, but remained president of the FIA Institute for Motor Sport Safety. The FIA President Max Mosley appointed Watkins longtime deputy Gary Hartenstein as his successor. On the occasion of the race in Monza 2011 FIA Institute presented under the direction of President Sid Watkins, as the heads of the driver can be better protected in the future.
Honorary title
2002 Watkins Member of the Order of the British Empire. The University of Liverpool conferred on him at a ceremony on 8 July 2004 an honorary doctorate. On 8 October 2004, he became the first president of the FIA Foundation for the Automobile and Society and on 10 December the same year he became the first president of the FIA Institute for Motor Sport Safety (FIA Institute for Motor Sport Safety ), both due to the centenary the FIA had been established.
Sid Watkins died on 12 September 2012 at the age of 84 years at London's King Edward VII hospital of cancer. He was also the author and co -author of several books on racing safety. He was married and had four sons and two daughters.
Publications
- Sid Watkins, David Tremayne: The Science of Safety: The Battle Against Unacceptable Risks in Motor Racing. Haynes Publications 2000, ISBN 1-85960-664-4.
- Sid Watkins, Jackie Stewart: Beyond the Limit. Pan Books 2002, ISBN 0-330-48196-7.