Italian town remembers Ayrton Senna, 'a champion in life', 20 years on
Twenty years after Ayrton Senna died at Imola's race track, the town is gearing up to honour a Formula One driver it remembers as much for his charity and charisma as his three world championship wins.
Memories of the great Brazilian are still clear in the minds of many in the northern Italian town, where five days of events to commemorate the anniversary begin on Wednesday.
"I remember it like it was yesterday. I cried for a week," said bar owner Gianni Mezzetti, 56, founder of the Barrichello Fans Club named after Senna's compatriot and former Ferrari driver Rubens.
I remember it like it was yesterday. I cried for a week
Mezzetti and other Imola residents recalled how Senna visited a young fan paralysed in an accident every time he came to the town, and the owner of the hotel where he stayed said he always gave race tickets to staff.
The May 1 death of Senna, the last driver killed during a Formula One race, and Austrian Roland Ratzenberger the day before, sent shockwaves through the motor racing world and led to sweeping changes to safety regulations.
A devout Catholic who took solace from the Bible and donated significant sums to helping the underprivileged in his homeland during his career, Senna was nonetheless a fierce competitor and outspoken critic of his rivals.
Spats with other drivers, notably teammate Alain Prost, were well publicised during his life and in the 2010 documentary Senna, by Asif Kapadia, which will be shown during the celebrations.
In Imola, though, they prefer to remember the champion for his humility rather than for any track controversies.