Alex Zanardi, the two-time CART IndyCar champion who later became a Paralympic handbike gold medallist after losing his legs in a catastrophic crash, has died aged 59.
His competitive career was effectively ended following a second severe accident during a handbike race in 2020 that left him with critical head injuries. He remained hospitalised for more than a year before returning home in late 2021.
The Bologna native raced in Formula 1 in two separate spells, but his greatest achievements came in the United States with the CART IndyCar series. Zanardi claimed back-to-back championships there, which led to an attempt to return to F1 with the Williams team.
Zanardi first came to prominence in 1991 with a strong start to the Formula 3000 season, which put him on the radar of F1 teams. Although he narrowly lost the F3000 title to Christian Fittipaldi, he was chosen by Jordan to replace the struggling Roberto Moreno for the final three races of the year. In the season finale at Adelaide he had been running fifth before the race was abandoned because of heavy rain; the countback rule subsequently placed him ninth, leaving him outside the points.
After a one-off appearance for Minardi in 1992, Zanardi returned to F1 with Lotus in 1993. His season was cut short by a major crash at Spa caused by a failure in the car’s active suspension system.
With Lotus folding the following year, Zanardi moved to the United States where he joined Chip Ganassi’s CART team. After a learning year alongside champion Jimmy Vasser, Zanardi won the championship in each of the next two seasons. He produced some of INDYCAR’s most memorable moments, including the audacious pass on Bryan Herta to win at Laguna Seca in 1996 and the remarkable victory at Long Beach in 1998 after recovering from a lap down.
Those successes earned Zanardi a return to Formula 1 with Williams. He struggled to adapt to the sport’s then-new rules—narrower cars and grooved tyres—and left after a single season.
Zanardi returned to Champ Car (the successor of CART) and in 2001 suffered the most serious crash of his career. Exiting the pits at the Lausitzring, he spun onto the racing line and was struck at almost full speed by Alex Tagliani. The collision severed both of Zanardi’s legs. Quick action from the Champ Car medical team saved his life.
Following a long and determined recovery, Zanardi returned to motorsport in touring cars adapted with hand controls. He took race wins in the World Touring Car Championship for BMW and won the Italian Superturismo championship in 2005. He also continued to compete in GT racing in the years that followed.
Handcycling became a new sporting focus for Zanardi. He reached the highest level in that discipline as well, representing his country at the 2012 and 2016 Paralympic Games and winning four gold medals across those events.
During a handbike race in 2020 he was involved in another serious incident, sustaining major head injuries. He spent more than a year in intensive care and rehabilitation before being discharged to his home in late 2021.
His death was confirmed today. Zanardi is survived by his wife Daniela and their son Niccolo.
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