The Bol d'Or is a 24-hour motorcycle endurance race first organised in 1922, making it one of the longest-running motorsport events in existence. The race takes its name from the French for "golden bowl." Originally held at various circuits around France, including the clay track at Vaujours and the Loges track at Saint-Germain-en-Laye, the race gravitated to Linas-Montlhéry for much of the post-war period.
From 1971 to 1977 the Bol d'Or was held at the Le Mans Bugatti circuit — the permanent inner section of the Le Mans complex that excludes the full circuit's Mulsanne and Porsche curves. This period placed the Bol d'Or in close proximity to the developing 24 Heures du Mans motorcycle tradition, though the two events occupied different calendar positions.
When the Bol d'Or departed Le Mans after 1977, the 24 Heures du Mans was established to fill the gap left on the Bugatti circuit's calendar. The Bol d'Or relocated to Circuit Paul Ricard, the technically demanding circuit near Bandol in the Var department of southern France.
Paul Ricard provided a modern permanent facility well-suited to endurance racing, and the 1978 edition inaugurated what would become a 22-year association between the race and the circuit. The move coincided with significant growth in the popularity of endurance motorcycle racing across France and the wider Francophone world.
The regulations for three riders per machine had recently come into effect — the switch from two-rider to three-rider teams was made in the interests of safety — and the 1978 race was among the first editions to operate fully under this format.
The relocation to Paul Ricard repositioned the Bol d'Or as part of a coherent southern French motorsport geography and gave it a stable home during the critical period when the FIM Endurance World Championship was taking shape. The FIM Endurance Cup, which had existed since 1960, became the European Championship in 1976 and a full World Championship in 1980, meaning the 1978 Bol d'Or took place precisely during this transition toward genuine world championship status for the endurance format.
Endurance racing's strong Francophone character — with the major events held in France and French-speaking Belgium — was reflected in the competitive culture of the Bol d'Or, and the Paul Ricard era from 1978 onward reinforced France's centrality to the discipline. The circuit hosted the race until 1999, after which it moved to Magny-Cours until 2014, before returning to Paul Ricard in 2016.
The 1978 edition represents the beginning of the Bol d'Or's long association with permanent, modern racing circuits rather than the road and semi-permanent venues of its early decades. Paul Ricard gave the race consistency, international visibility, and a platform from which it grew alongside the FIM Endurance World Championship through the 1980s and into the 1990s.