ITALY: MOTOR RACING: Ferrari's Alonso, Raikkonen and Berger join fans to remember deaths of Senna and Ratzenberger

Record ID: 693032

  • Title: ITALY: MOTOR RACING: Ferrari's Alonso, Raikkonen and Berger join fans to remember deaths of Senna and Ratzenberger
  • Date: 1st May 2014
  • Summary: IMOLA, ITALY (MAY 1, 2014) (REUTERS) LARGE CROWDS ARRIVING ON THE TAMBURELLO CURVE WHERE AYRTON SENNA'S ACCIDENT TOOK PLACE HUGE CROWDS ON RACE TRACK CROWDS GATHERING FOR MEMORIAL MORE PEOPLE ARRIVING FERRARI FORMULA 1 DRIVERS KIMI RAIKKONEN AND FERNANDO ALONSO ARRIVING (SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMULA 1 DRIVER KIMI RAIKKONEN SAYING: "Obviously I remember when it happened, i
  • Embargoed: 16th May 2014 13:00
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  • Location: Italy
  • Country: Italy
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA2PIG9U87COS0BSWKVTJ2DFABK
  • Story Text: Twenty years after Ayrton Senna died at Italy's Imola race track, thousands of people on Thursday (May 1) took to the curve where he lost his life to celebrate a driver known as much for his three world championship wins as his charity and charisma.
    A memorial service was organised at the race track to coincide with the moment of Senna's fatal accident. Fans were also remembering the death of Austrian Formula One rookie Roland Ratzenberger who died the day before Senna, during qualifying for the San Marino grand prix at Imola.
    Ferrari drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso attended the ceremony to mark the anniversary. Raikkonen and Alonso were mobbed by the crowds as they walked along the circuit to reach the Tamburello corner.
    Raikkonen said he was only 14 when the fatal crash happened.

    "Obviously I remember when it happened, it was twenty years ago and it was a very sad weekend for F1. But that's in the past and now we remember them," he said.

    "I feel sad but this is how this business is, it was a bad weekend and bad things happened but that's how it is," Raikkonen added.
    Also in attendance was Austrian driver Gerhard Berger, a close friend and competitor of Senna's. He was driving a Ferrari in the race.

    "It's great to come here, back to Imola. I mean it's a sad moment but on the other side we all have good remember here, we all had great times here and today we give the respect back to Ayrton so this is a good thing to do," he said.
    According to organisers around 20,000 people attended Thursday's events at the race track.
    The crowds broke into an applause after a minute's silence to mark the moment of the crash at 14:17 local time (1217gmt). Many pointed their fingers up to the sky to imitate Senna's trademark victory sign.
    Senna's Williams car suddenly veered off the track five laps into the race and hit a wall. He died at the trackside despite attempts by doctors to revive him.
    The May 1 death of Senna, the last driver killed during a Formula One race, and Austrian Roland Ratzenberger the day before sent shockwaves through the motor racing world and led to sweeping changes to safety regulations.
    Twenty years on, the Brazilian driver has not lost the affection of his fans.

    "For all of us fans, he wasn't just an exceptional driver but also a person of the highest quality. Today's memorial is really a beautiful way to mark his character and I'm sure all his supporters are pleased," said Fausto Ramazotti, a Senna fan from Monza, northern Italy.

    "Nothing has changed because he was a great person and so it's just right that he is still remembered, it's only been twenty years," another participant, Viviana Mozza from Bari in southern Italy, added.
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