The Alex Zanardi Paralympic Thread

[JJMonty]

Well this is one of the most inspring bit of sportsmanship I've ever seen

I thought it wasn't possible for my respect for Zanardi to get any higher after the paralympics, but this just shows how much of an inspiration Zanardi is!

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/wor ... 00890.html

An icon and a gentleman

[DemocalypseNow]

http://english.gazzetta.it/More_sports/ ... 4493.shtml

So he will be doing H4 handcycling again in Rio! Great news...

[dinizintheoven]

Bring on the next four years, then! Not that I'm looking forward to being 37 all that much, but at least seeing another shot at Alex putting the young whippersnappers in their place will soften the blow a bit...

I don't think he'll ever retire. He'll be handcycling for fun when everyone around him at an age when those who still have their legs will need a zimmer frame.

[Ferrarist]

Even though it's a bit off-topic: Alex Zanardi will test a BMW M3 DTM next Thursday. I'll see where this leads. I'm not in favour of putting promotional drivers like Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard into F1 cockpits. But if Zanardi can successfully pull off a Tarquini in DTM, why not? Maybe he can also do Indy, while he's at it. Mario Andretti even raced in his 50's there.

[Aerospeed]

Even though it's a bit off-topic: Alex Zanardi will test a BMW M3 DTM next Thursday. I'll see where this leads. I'm not in favour of putting promotional drivers like Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard into F1 cockpits. But if Zanardi can successfully pull off a Tarquini in DTM, why not? Maybe he can also do Indy, while he's at it. Mario Andretti even raced in his 50's there.

How does one drive a car without legs anyways??

[pasta_maldonado]

Even though it's a bit off-topic: Alex Zanardi will test a BMW M3 DTM next Thursday. I'll see where this leads. I'm not in favour of putting promotional drivers like Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard into F1 cockpits. But if Zanardi can successfully pull off a Tarquini in DTM, why not? Maybe he can also do Indy, while he's at it. Mario Andretti even raced in his 50's there.

How does one drive a car without legs anyways??

I beleive the accelerator and brakes were adapted to go on the steering wheel

[SeedStriker]

Even though it's a bit off-topic: Alex Zanardi will test a BMW M3 DTM next Thursday. I'll see where this leads. I'm not in favour of putting promotional drivers like Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard into F1 cockpits. But if Zanardi can successfully pull off a Tarquini in DTM, why not? Maybe he can also do Indy, while he's at it. Mario Andretti even raced in his 50's there.

How does one drive a car without legs anyways??

I beleive the accelerator and brakes were adapted to go on the steering wheel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awp-S-QiiXk

Here is how the man makes the impossible possible. And about Indy, I believe that Jimmy Vasser talked about giving him a trial if he got the gold medal in the paralympic. HE WON TWO, JIMMY! PUT THAT MAN INTO THE COCKPIT!

[Ferrarist]

Even though it's a bit off-topic: Alex Zanardi will test a BMW M3 DTM next Thursday. I'll see where this leads. I'm not in favour of putting promotional drivers like Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard into F1 cockpits. But if Zanardi can successfully pull off a Tarquini in DTM, why not? Maybe he can also do Indy, while he's at it. Mario Andretti even raced in his 50's there.

How does one drive a car without legs anyways??

Are you serious? Zanardi did WTCC a couple of years ago, and even won a couple of races. Not to mention his Italian Touring Car Championship in 2005 and his comeback laps at the 2003 German 500.

[Aerospeed]

Even though it's a bit off-topic: Alex Zanardi will test a BMW M3 DTM next Thursday. I'll see where this leads. I'm not in favour of putting promotional drivers like Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard into F1 cockpits. But if Zanardi can successfully pull off a Tarquini in DTM, why not? Maybe he can also do Indy, while he's at it. Mario Andretti even raced in his 50's there.

How does one drive a car without legs anyways??

Are you serious? Zanardi did WTCC a couple of years ago, and even won a couple of races. Not to mention his Italian Touring Car Championship in 2005 and his comeback laps at the 2003 German 500.

I know he drove cars before, I just wondered what he used to combat his disability. Pasta kindly answered that for me

[TomWazzleshaw]

Even though it's a bit off-topic: Alex Zanardi will test a BMW M3 DTM next Thursday. I'll see where this leads. I'm not in favour of putting promotional drivers like Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard into F1 cockpits. But if Zanardi can successfully pull off a Tarquini in DTM, why not? Maybe he can also do Indy, while he's at it. Mario Andretti even raced in his 50's there.

How does one drive a car without legs anyways??

Are you serious? Zanardi did WTCC a couple of years ago, and even won a couple of races. Not to mention his Italian Touring Car Championship in 2005 and his comeback laps at the 2003 German 500.

Where he drove so quickly that he would have qualified 5th on the grid and demolished most of the field in the race that afternoon...

[tommykl]

I mean, if Philippe Streiff can drive, why not Zanardi?

[DemocalypseNow]

I mean, if Philippe Streiff can drive, why not Zanardi?

Maybe Zanardi should call up Alessandro Nannini for some tips! He won something like 16 races in DTM.

[NAM]

Here are some images of his DTM test: http://www.dtm.tv/Index/Start/DE#.UJ4qK_FzOxY

This looks quite promising. I'd love to see him race in this championship.

[dr-baker]

Wait a sec. After Zanardi won his Paralympic medals, there was mention of Jimmy Vasser having promised Alessandro a drive in next year's Indy 500. Then a few weeks ago, Autosport mentioned that work is being made on a Italian IndyCar round for next September (possibly). Could this be an opportunity for him to have a second outing, in front of his home crowd, in a car built by an Italian manufacturer (Dallara)? Or am I off in a world of my own again?

[CoopsII]

Zanardi continues to inspire, as do all the paralympians (well, maybe not Pistorius)


http://olympics.nbcsports.com/2016/09/07/alex-zanardi-paralympics-cycling-cart-crash-auto-racing/

Oh, and how does it feel to be 37 Dinizintheoven?

[AndreaModa]

A real inspiration. Top guy.

Am I the only one that feels the whole event is devalued to a certain extent from a Team GB perspective? There's so many categories, so many medals that watching the reporting on twitter is just an endless stream of medal announcements. Each and every one of the athletes deserves our admiration and respect, and they do, but I feel that a lot of it is lost in the general 'noise'. I wonder if this is the same for the USA in the Olympics - i.e. so many medals it almost becomes meaningless?

[Londoner]

SPOILER ALERT. LOOK I'M EVEN TYPING IN CAPS


He's only gone and won gold again! GET IN THERE MY SON.


SPOILER ALERT

[CoopsII]

He's the man, he makes me totes emosh, he's got arms like Popeye

http://www.foxsports.com/motor/story/alex-zanardi-gold-medal-paralympics-summer-rio-2016-091516

[Bleu]

Sadly, another cycling event saw the death of Iranian competitor.

I think this is from the same race, the finish is quite strange:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzoEQHgLO90

[dinizintheoven]

I was wondering where all the announcements had gone about "some of Alex stay in the car and some does not" - looks like I forgot to check this forum! I haven't been around much, though, so it figures.

Oh, and how does it feel to be 37 Dinizintheoven?

Not a clue why the first post in this thread in four years would be asking me that, but the last six months or so have been utter trash (hence the absence of the Formula E season review podcast that I'd been planning, or anything else along those lines, really) and I've been wondering if I would ever see 40... if you want context, you could start by looking here, which I wrote at the end of March.

Things are looking up slightly, and so far, being 37 is at least a bit better than being 36. I'll know properly by the end of the year.

I've already started planning what I'm going to do when the big day hits, and as it's on a Saturday, a birthday gig will be in order... I've already started asking a handful of bands if they're interested.