Senna to be celebrated

Ayrton Senna fans will gather to celebrate the life of one of Formula One’s brightest stars at Imola’s Enzo e Dino Ferrari circuit this weekend – 20 years after his tragic death in the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.

The Imola circuit will open its doors to the public for four days of motorsport memories from this Thursday (May 1) to pay tribute to the talented Brazilian driver on the 20th anniversary of his untimely passing two decades ago.

The event will celebrate the life of Austrian Roland Ratzenberger, who also died during qualifying for the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.

Among the guests who will attend the commemorative ceremony at 1:30pm local time on Thursday will be current F1 stars Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen.

Although they were both very young at the time, both racers said they were already keen enough about motorsport to be affected by Senna’s achievements.

“I think Senna set the standard for all drivers and he was definitely the best of his generation,” said Alonso.

“What made him special was his great will to win and the numbers speak for themselves. He always fought right to the bitter end and that earned him the respect of all his colleagues and it’s what makes him a legend today.

“I was very little at the time and Spanish TV did not show Formula One, but I began to know something about him as my father was a fan and my first kart was painted in the same colours as his car.”

Raikkonen said his memory of Senna’s death also remains vivid, despite the two decades that have since passed.

“Senna’s death was an incredibly sad moment for the world of Formula One,” he said.

“I was still at school back then and even if I don’t remember much about him, because I was too young, that day has stayed fixed in my memory. I think he was a great driver and a benchmark for many who came after him.”