May 1st, known as International Workers’ Day, was forever marked in the memory of Brazilians for another reason. On the same day, in 1994, the country lost one of its sons and the patron saint of Brazilian sport: Ayrton Senna.
Born in the capital of São Paulo, in the Santana neighborhood, Ayrton got a taste for speed at just four years old, when he started racing karts, a game that became serious at the age of thirteen, when he participated in kart competitions.
At the age of 21, Senna left for Europe, where, in 1981, he secured the Formula Ford 1600 championship in the United Kingdom, winning 12 of the 20 races. He then won the English Formula 3 title, which, at the time, was the last step before Formula 1.
When he was just 24 years old, Senna began his journey in Formula 1. Over the course of a decade, he won 41 victories and three world titles – in 1988, 1990 and 1991 -, all with the McLaren team, establishing himself as one of the greatest drivers in F1.
Unforgettable
The image that many Brazilians still have today is that of Senna with a fluttering Brazilian flag in his hands, a symbol that was present at the top of the podium in a socio-political and economically turbulent period for the country.
This act began with Ayrton’s victory in the Detroit GP in 1986, in the United States. At the time, the Brazilian men’s football team had just been eliminated by France during the quarterfinals of the World Cup in Mexico.
Upon seeing a Brazilian crowd in the stands with the flag, the three-time champion asked for one for himself. This gesture was also a response to the mechanics of his team, Lotus (equipped with the French engine Renault), and the designer Gerard Ducarouge, who teased him about his result in the Cup.
Ayrton, to this day Brazil’s last world champion in Formula 1, was named Patron of Brazilian Sports on April 26, 2023, as reported by the newspaper Folha de S. Paulo. This distinction was formalized by Law 14,559/2023, sanctioned by the vice-president and acting president at the time, Geraldo Alckmin.
A Brazilian hero dies
On that tragic weekend, Senna was in Imola, Italy, for the San Marino Grand Prix, which was marked in the history of motorsport by the series of accidents that occurred on the track.
On the eve of the big race, Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger died in a fatal accident during his training and, the day before, Brazilian Rubens Barrichello had also suffered an accident that resulted in minor injuries.
To recover the historical episode, the website Aventuras na História interviewed Rodrigo Rainha, historian and professor at Estácio.
I was at home, in a community in Rio de Janeiro and we watched it on TV. My father used to joke that Formula 1 you didn’t need to watch all the time. So, it happened. ‘It will overtake!’ Then you look up from the newspaper, and I saw, on that curve that I imagined was calm, the car went straight, and I said: ‘It’s not possible!’”, recalled the professor.
“’Senna hit’. That’s when it starts, then, black cloth, go to the hospital, that one moved or didn’t move. I need to remember that Brazil was at a time when the mongrel complex, somehow, was strong there, we were not doing well in football. There were serious political problems. So, when that happens, the first thing we think is: ‘Wow, nothing really works!’ and then you will see that it is much more serious than everything you had thought.”, he said.
On May 1, 1994, Senna was driving at 300 kilometers per hour on the seventh lap of the route when he lost control of the car at the Tamburello curve and collided violently with a wall on the track.
The impact of the crash broke the suspension bar of his car and the piece went through the Brazilian’s helmet, hitting him in the forehead. Moments later, the pilot was treated on the runway and taken by helicopter to the Maggiore Hospital in Bologna, where his death was confirmed at 1:40 pm, Brasília time.
When Senna passed away, at the age of 34, in an accident broadcast live around the world, all of Brazil felt the loss of their idol. The Brazilian State declared an official mourning period of three days and granted honors as head of state, with a two-day wake at the Legislative Assembly of São Paulo, an optional point in public offices in São Paulo and assistance from the Armed Forces during the procession.
The three-time champion’s coffin was visited by 240,000 people, a testament to the impact and admiration that Ayrton woke up. The funeral procession, which continued to the Morumbi Cemetery, was accompanied by countless fans, who formed a human chain on Marginal Tietê.
Legacy
In addition to the records and victories in Formula 1, Rodrigo also explained the legacy that Ayrton Senna left for Brazilians.
I think there is a legacy of a collective sense of homeland, of recognizing others, being proud of where you came from, representing colors, which help to strengthen the foundations of civility and society beyond a question of right or left, beyond of trying to place this flag only in one aspect or another. But, above all, understanding that it is a human legacy of building a collective society,” he said.
To end the interview, we asked if it is possible to describe Ayrton in just one word: “I think it is very difficult, maybe you can get a hint in some relationship. Then maybe I would think about identity, maybe I would think about idol, maybe I would think, I don’t know, shared value, but I don’t know. I don’t know how to define you so clearly or not, and that’s the point.” concluded the teacher.
SOURCE: adventuresnahistoria.uol.com.br