Alex Zanardi, auto racing champion-turned-Paralympian, dies at 59 after life-altering accidents
ROME (AP) — Alex Zanardi, the Italian auto racing champion-turned-Paralympic gold medalist whose career was marked by two life-altering accidents, has died. He was 59. Zanardi’s family announced his death on Saturday, saying that he passed away on Friday night.
“Alex died peacefully, surrounded by the affection of those closest to him,” the family said in a statement without providing a cause of death. In 2020, Zanardi was seriously injured in a handbike accident after crashing into an oncoming truck during a relay event in Tuscany. Zanardi suffered serious facial and cranial trauma in the crash and was put in a medically induced coma.
Nearly 20 years earlier, Zanardi lost both of his legs in an auto racing crash . "Italy loses a great champion and an extraordinary man, capable of turning every challenge of life into a lesson in courage, strength, and dignity,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said on X. “Alex Zanardi knew how to bounce back every time, facing even the toughest challenges with determination, clarity, and a strength of spirit that was truly exceptional,” Meloni added.
“With his sporting achievements, with his example, and with his humanity, he gave all of us much more than a victory: he gave hope, pride, and the strength to never give up. On behalf of myself and the government, I extend my heartfelt thoughts and the sincerest closeness to his family and to all those who loved him. Thank you for everything, Alex.
” Zanardi won two championships in CART In the United States before a brief move to Formula One. He returned to America and was racing in Germany in a CART event in 2001 when both of his legs were severed in a horrific accident the weekend after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.