Before the 2001 near-fatal racing accident in which he lost his legs, Allesandro Zanardi was known as a fierce and totally dedicated competitor. The only thing that has changed since the accident is Zanardi is even more determined to overcome the odds against him, if that’s possible. He has shown his strength as a BMW works racing driver competing in specially prepared BMWs, and even more as a world-class handcycle champion in international competition.
Nothing could demonstrate his courage and fighting spirit better than what happened this past weekend during the Berlin Marathon that, appropriately enough, was sponsored by BMW.
Zanardi was competing for the first time in the BMW Berlin Marathon, Germany’s largest running event. He was among the 70,000 contestants and was competing in the handbike class. Unfortunately, the type of handcycle Alex usually uses was not allowed in this race, so he was forced to compete with an unfamiliar recumbent handcycle he borrowed from a friend.
The race covered the usual 26.2 miles and Zanardi was cruising in good shape until, with only about five and a half miles to go, the chain on his cycle broke. He could have given up and given in, but that would not have been Allesandro Zanardi’s style.
Instead, he sat on the cycle’s rear axle and pushed the rear wheels of his cycle like it was a wheel chair for over five miles and finished the race with a time of one hour and fifty minutes.
“I had started with a handcycle and finished with a wheel chair, because I was pushing the wheels to complete the last nine kilometers. Obviously this is not a BMW,” Zanardi said jokingly, and pointed to broken bike. “It is a pity. The race was going very well. I actually surprised myself, as I was faster than I had expected I would be able to be with this unfamiliar type of handcycle, and at first I was able to stay with the leading group. When the chain broke, I did not want to retire. I absolutely wanted to finish this marathon in the city where I was born for the second time, and so I pushed my handcycle like an Olympic wheel chair over the last kilometers. It was a fantastic event. The atmosphere, the many, many spectators that cheered for us—it was just great. I would love to come back next year, and then I will attack again.”
Zanardi could take it easy for a while after that herculean effort, but that wouldn’t be Alex’s style either. In less than two weeks he will be in Hawaii competing in his second long-distance triathlon on October 10th. It’s no wonder BMW has designated Zanardi a BMW Ambassador.—Scott Blazey
[Photos courtesy of BMW AG.]
