Alex Zanardi, former F1 driver and Paralympic cycling champion, passed away

Alex Zanardi, an Italian motor racing driver who became a Paralympic cycling champion after losing both legs in an accident, has died at 59, his family announced Saturday.

Zanardi, one of his country's most beloved and respected athletes, who is credited with helping transform the perception of disability in Italy, died Friday night.

In a statement released through the charity he founded, Obiettivo3, his family said he died "suddenly" but also "in peace, surrounded by the love of his family and friends."

His death comes six years after the four-time Paralympic champion suffered a second serious accident in June 2020, when his adapted bicycle collided with an oncoming truck during a race in Tuscany.

A race between F-1 and CART

Previously, Zanardi raced in Formula 1 for Jordan, Minardi and Lotus in the early 1990s, then moved to the CART championship in the United States, where he was series champion in 1997 and 1998. He returned to Formula 1 with Williams in 1999 before returning to CART.

Zanardi was nearly killed in a terrible accident in 2001 at the Lausitzring circuit in Germany, after which both his legs were amputated. His car stalled in the middle of the track after a spin and was embedded by another vehicle at more than 300 km/h.

Even so, the athlete born in Bologna on October 23, 1966 went on to become one of the best-known figures in Paralympic sport, winning two gold medals at the London 2012 Games and another two in Rio four years later.

Meloni: "A lesson in courage, strength and dignity"

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, highlighted Zanardi as "a great champion and an extraordinary man, able to turn every trial of life into a lesson of courage, strength and dignity."

Cordiano Dagnoni, president of the Italian Cycling Federation, said that Zanardi "transformed the culture of our country, bringing joy and happiness to those who had the good fortune to know him, and hope to so many in Italy and around the world."

Dagnoni added that a minute's silence will be observed at races this weekend in tribute to the athlete.