Entry into Formula 1 in 1995, the company Météo France has since maintained an important role in Formula 1 and in motorsport in general.
In 17 years, the company that controls the weather in France and around the world has significantly expanded its activities in the field of sports. As confirmed by Marianne Lyon-Caen, Head of Sports at Météo France to casinoenlignefrance.eu.com: « Météo France stepped into F1 in 1995 with weather forecasts for the Ligier team. We then worked for Prost GP, Ferrari, Toyota… »
In 2006, Météo France became the provider of weather assistance to the FIA – Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, and the teams agreed to share the same weather service. Météo France thus deploys two people to the site of each race.
“We provide a common service to all the teams and to the FIA for all on-site competitions, including competitions in GP2 and GP3,” confides Marianne Lyon-Caen. “Our team is composed of two people: a forecaster who is now specialized in this field and an engineer to install the equipment.”
A few years earlier, the teams had different weather suppliers. This explained the differences in strategies when it was necessary to prepare the car after rainy qualifications for wet or dry settings.
Predicting the weather in the field of sports is a challenge for Météo France but above all a means of developing highly advanced skills and technologies. In particular, a radar with very high resolution allows knowing the arrival of rain on the circuit and its intensity, thus helping teams with their strategies.
Météo France has a radar near the circuit, optimally installed to anticipate the arrival of rain. The topography of the area is important for this installation. The introduction of new Grand Prix events is accompanied by the search for new locations. This is the case in China, for example, where new buildings are being constructed all around the circuit. Our engineer had to change the location of the radar this year because the information was being disrupted by these new constructions, recalls the Sports Manager of Météo France.
Far from the idea of sponsorship – Météo France communicates very little about its role – working for Formula 1 allows the development of technologies that lead to ever more precision to meet the high demands of these clients: « Sport allows us to continuously bring innovations to our technologies and then apply them in the public domain. It’s a way for us to always stay on top, » confirms Marianne Lyon-Caen.
