Industrialist, who aside from Matra, also had business interests in the media, defence and horse racing. When he died, the Lagadere group was one of the biggest media companies in Europe. A trained engineer initially, he worked for Dassault Aviation, before rising up the ranks. He became the head of the Matra Formula 1 and Le Mans teams before diverging into other business interests. He ran and/or published Elle magazine and Tele 7 Jours, Car and Driver and Road and Track. Lagardère bought the Haras d'Ouilly stud in Pont-d'Ouilly, Calvados, winning the French owners' championship in 1998 and between 1995 and 2001 was the leading breeder in France. His most important racing win came with Sagamix who won the 1998 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. In 2002, the Group One Grand Critérium race for two-year-olds at Longchamp Racecourse was renamed in his honour. He died from acute disseminated encephalomyelitis following an operation on his hip.

Biography last updated 22 May 2017