A Tesla Roadster won the 24 Hours of Oschersleben earlier this month, in the first ever 24-hour race reserved exclusively for electric cars.

The race was held on Dec. 1-2 at the track in Saxony-Anhalt, and was won by a Tesla driven by Hans-Friederich Wilhelm Neuss, Thomas Schmitt and Udo Weges.

They completed 495 laps over the 24-hour period, finishing nine laps clear of the runner-up team in a Hyundai Kona.

Ten different manufacturers were represented in the 30-car field, including Tesla, Renault, Hyundai, Kia, Smart, Nissan, Opel and BMW.

The winning car was the oldest Tesla in the field, a Roadster 2.5 which went out of production in 2012 and was based on the Lotus Elise.

Teams had to find a balance between charging times and energy saving, given the considerable track time they would lose on a full charge in the pit lane.

This led to teams focusing on range optimization rather than outright pace, with the more successful competitors able to maximize their range and find the best balance between time spent on track and in the pits charging.

“More than 100 drivers took part in our event, which was the first 24-hour race for a purely electrically driven field to mark a milestone in automotive history,” commented promoter Rafael de Mestre.

“The respective best marks of the individual constructions will now be a motivating goal for the teams participating next year.”

A repeat of the event is confirmed for 2019, and although a date has yet to be set, 13 participants have already registered.

The event was held as part of the ecoGP series, which will restart with an event in Abu Dhabi on Jan. 17, before further events in Andorra, nine-hour races at the Hungaroring and Calafat, a night race in Ales and the 24H Oschersleben.

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