Alex Zanardi showing signs of “clinical improvements”
Alex Zanardi is showing “clinical improvements” as he continues to recover from the handbike accident he suffered in June.
The news came in an official statement from the Milan hospital where he has been under treatment since July 24.
The 53-year-old Zanardi has undergone four operations since his collision with a truck exactly two months ago on June 19, and which left him with serious head and facial injuries.
He was treated initially at the Santa Maria alle Scotte hospital in Siena. After three operations he was showing signs of improvement, and thus on July 21 he was moved to the Villa Beretta rehabilitation facility in Costa Masnaga, close to the town of Lecco, to the north of Milan.
However, shortly after the transfer his condition deteriorated, and on July 24 he was moved again to the intensive care unit of the San Raffaele Hospital, which is located between central Milan and Monza.
There he soon underwent further surgery under Professor Pietro Mortini, the facility’s director of neurosurgery, for what the hospital called “late complications due to the primal head injury.”
The hospital noted at the time that the “clinical and radiological tests confirm the successful outcome of the above mentioned treatments and the current clinical condition of the patient, who is still hospitalised in the neurosurgical intensive care unit, appears to be stable.”
Subsequent to that operation there have been no further official reports on his condition in recent weeks.
However today the hospital released a new statement, noting: “After a period during which he was subjected to intensive care following hospitalisation on July 24 the patient responded with significant clinical improvements.
“For this reason, he is currently assisted and treated with semi-intensive care at the Neuroreanimation Unit, directed by Professor Luigi Beretta.”
The Paralympian and two-time Indycar champion was injured when he crashed near Siena while taking part in a charity event.
The accident happened on the SP146, a winding road through the countryside between the towns of Pienza and San Quirico d'Orcia.
Witnesses said that Zanardi lost control, overturned and went into the oncoming lane, where he struck a truck.
New hydrogen-powered race series to launch in 2023
Motorsport Australia president announces retirement
WEC assessing Sebring alternative for US round from 2024
The FIA World Endurance Championship has admitted that it is examining alternatives to Sebring for the US round of the series from 2024.
Taylor: "Worn out" error reset button better than Rolex 24 limp mode
Ricky Taylor has zero worries over the pace of the new Acura ARX-06, but believes the new GTP cars will encounter several sensor issues over the course of the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona.
Number change on Foyt’s entry for IndyCar rookie Pedersen
AJ Foyt Racing has revealed that, contrary to last week’s announcement, Benjamin Pedersen will not run number #88 on his car.
Wehrlein hails "perfect" Porsche strategy, efficiency for Diriyah FE win
Pascal Wehrlein reckoned that Porsche's Diriyah E-Prix strategy and efficiency worked "perfectly" en route to claiming his second career victory in Formula E.
The plug in and play stand-ins who got their timing just right
Nyck de Vries’s Italian GP exploits weren’t the first post-eleventh-hour call-up in motorsport history, and won’t be the last either. Here are some offbeat tales from the past
Why romanticism isn't the key factor in Lola’s racing return
The iconic Lola name is being relaunched after it was taken over by new ownership. Part of that reboot is a planned return to racing, though the exact details of this are still to be finalised - though its new owner does have a desire to bring the brand back to the Le Mans 24 Hours. But romanticism doesn't appear to be the driving force behind this renewed project...
Rating the best drivers of the century so far
Autosport's Top 50 feature has been a staple of the magazine for the past two decades since its first appearance in 2002. Here are the drivers that have featured most prevalently during that time
The best motorsport moments of 2021
Motorsport produced one of its greatest years of all-time in 2021 despite a backdrop of ongoing COVID-19 challenges and an ever-changing racing landscape. Through the non-stop action Motorsport.com has collected the finest moments from the past 12 months to highlight the incredible drama and joy motorsport generates.
The racing comeback artists who resurrected long-dormant careers
Making it in motorsport can be tough, and sometimes drivers move elsewhere before their best chance arrives. Here are some of those who made it back
The one-time Schumacher rival rebooting his career Down Under
Joey Mawson made waves in the middle of the last decade, beating future Haas Formula 1 driver Mick Schumacher - among other highly-rated talents - to the 2016 German F4 title. A run in F1's feeder GP3 category only caused his career to stall, but now back in Australia Mawson's S5000 title success has set that to rights
Why Todt’s FIA successor could be cut from the same cloth
Jean Todt has signalled that he will not stand for re-election as FIA president. Mark Gallagher analyses the strong credentials of one potential successor…
The lesson football’s would-be wreckers could learn from racing
OPINION: The greed-driven push for a European Super League that threatened to tear football apart is collapsing at the seams. Motor racing's equivalent, the football-themed Superleague Formula series of 2008-11, was everything that the proposed ESL never could be.
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.