Legendary F1 Principal Frank Williams admitted to hospital, in stable condition

Sir Frank Williams, the founder of the Williams Formula One team, has been admitted to hospital and is in stable condition.

Williams’ family made his hospitalisation public on December 15, however, no medical details were revealed in the statement that said the 78-year-old was recently admitted, according to Reuters.

“Frank’s medical condition is a private matter and therefore the family will not be releasing any further details at this time,” read the statement.

Sir Frank had previously been the owner of two unsuccessful F1 teams – Frank Williams Racing (1969-1975) and Wolf–Williams Racing (1976) – before partnering with Sir Patrick Head, an automotive engineer, to form Williams Racing, as it is known today, in 1977.

In its heyday, the team won seven driver’s championships – the most recent coming in 1997 when Canadian racer Jacques Villeneuve finished top of the pile – and nine constructors’ championships.

Sir Frank, who is the longest-serving F1 Principal in history marked a half-century of leadership last year.

He and his family, including his daughter Claire who was in charge of running the day-to-day operations of Williams since 2013, left Formula One earlier this year after the team was sold to investment firm Dorilton Capital.

Sir Frank began reducing his workload in 2012, stepping down from the Williams board with Claire replacing him as the family representative.

In 2013, Claire was appointed Deputy Team Principal and took over the day-to-day operations.  Sir Frank stopped travelling to races in 2016 but he made a rare appearance at the British Grand Prix in 2019.

The Williams team has called on the public to respect the family’s privacy and said that they will provide an update in due course.

Picture: Williams Racing