Today, May 1st, marks 30 years since Ayrton Senna’s death. The Formula 1 driver was one of the greatest idols of Brazilian sport. The athlete’s death left a legacy on and off the track.
Ayrton Senna
Photo: Brasil Escola
Senna died during a race in Italy in 1994. When the driver was on the sixth lap, a broken steering bar caused him to lose control of the car as he passed the Tamburello curve and collided with a guardrail at almost 300 km. km/h.
As a result of the crash, one of the wheels hit the pilot’s helmet, sinking part of his skull. The Brazilian idol was taken to the hospital by helicopter, but he did not survive his injuries.
Ayrton Senna’s wake took place on May 5, 1994, in São Paulo, and lasted 22 hours. The procession was followed by around 240 thousand people and was broadcast live on television. Senna’s coffin was carried by drivers from all over the world, such as Frenchman Alain Prost and Brazilians Emerson Fittipaldi and Rubens Barrichello.
7 interesting facts about Ayrton Senna
Ayrton Senna of Brazil. This was the name of the Formula 1 driver who made history, becoming a kind of Brazilian hero. Check out seven interesting facts about Senna below, according to this article:
1) Karting in childhood
Senna’s motorsport career began like that of most drivers: in karts. At the age of four, Ayrton got his first kart, built by his father. The engine was taken from a lawnmower, but it reached 60 km/h. The kart was built by his father and was Ayrton’s main “toy” as a child.
2) Dating famous people
In 1981, at the age of 20, Senna married Lilian Vasconselos, a marriage that lasted a year. Afterwards, he dated some celebrities, such as the presenter Xuxa Meneghel and the American model and actress Carol Alt. When she died, Senna was in a relationship with the then model Adriane Galisteu. He had no children.
3) Debut in Formula 1
Ayrton Senna debuted in Formula 1 on March 25, 1984, at the Brazilian Grand Prix, at the now defunct Jacarepaguá circuit, in Rio de Janeiro. Senna wanted to have a great race in his country, but retired on the eighth lap due to an engine failure. However, in the second race, in South Africa, he came sixth and scored his first point in F1.
4) National hero
Senna’s victories and actions made him a national hero. At the end of the 1980s, Brazil had recently emerged from the Military Dictatorship and was going through a difficult economic period. Per capita income declined, and the percentage of Brazilians at the poverty line had increased. The Brazilian didn’t have much to be proud of, but Senna made a point of affirming his nationality and paraded with the national flag in his victories. These gestures and the exploitation of Senna’s image on TV contributed to the construction of an archetype of a national hero.
5) Titles in Formula 1
6) Tributes
Ayrton Senna won several honors around the world. On the Imola circuit, the site of the terrible accident, there is a statue in his honor. There is also a sculpture of the driver at the Donington Park circuit, where Senna had the best first lap of all time.
7) Ayrton Senna Institute
Senna’s greatest legacy is the Ayrton Senna Institute, a non-profit organization that benefits more than 1.5 million Brazilian children per year through the training of educators, educational projects and partnerships with public schools.
Image credit:
[1] Ayrton Senna Institute/ Wikimedia Commons
By Silvia Tancredi
Journalist
