Allaire du Pont
Allaire du Pont (May 4, 1913 – January 6, 2006) was an American sportswoman and a member of the prominent French-American Du Pont family of chemical manufacturers who is most remembered as the owner of the Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame champion, Kelso.
Allaire du Pont | |
|---|---|
| Born | Helena Allaire Crozer May 4, 1913 United States |
| Died | January 6, 2006 (aged 92) |
| Occupation(s) | Aviator Racehorse owner/breeder |
| Known for | Kelso |
| Board member of | Jockey Club (United States), Greener Pastures |
| Spouse | Richard Chichester du Pont |
| Children | Richard Jr. (1937–1986) Helena A. (b. 1939) |
| Parent(s) | Samuel A. Crozer & Helena Rutgers |
Born Helena Allaire Crozer, in 1934 she married Richard C. du Pont with whom she had a son, Richard Jr. and a daughter Helena. An avid sportsperson, she was an Olympic Trap shooter and a champion tennis player. Allaire du Pont and her husband were both glider and powered aircraft pilots. She set a national endurance record for women gliders in 1935. In the early days of flying when it was still a novelty, doing stunts was popular and she once flew her plane under the Chesapeake City bridge. Her husband died in 1943 while working for the War effort when a U.S. government experimental glider in which he was a passenger crashed during a demonstration flight. In 1947, she established the Richard C. du Pont Memorial Trophy to be awarded annually to the United States National Open Class Soaring Champion.