Alex Zanardi — My Sweetest Victory: A Memory of Racing Success, Adversity, and Courage
  The racing world held its collective breath in 2001 when Alessandro Zanardi lost both his legs in a horrifying accident at the Lausitzring in Germany. The racing world held its breath again nineteen months later while witnessing his incredible return to racing. Bentley Publishers makes available the North American edition of the Alex Zanardi biography, My Sweetest Victory, a book which has quickly sold over 50,000 copies in his native Italy.
Alex Zanardi - My Sweetest Victory recounts his incredible story as only he can tell it. In this very personal book Zanardi takes us from his childhood in Italy through his hard-fought racing success to the moving story of perseverance and love that motivated his recovery. Along the way, Zanardi presents his triumphs and setbacks in kart racing, Formula 3 & 3000, Formula 1, IndyCar and CART racing, culminating in back-to-back CART championships for 1997 and 1998. In riveting detail, Zanardi relates his terrible accident, the long path to recovery and his return to the Lausitz ring in a specially modified 750hp Champ Car to complete the 13 laps he didn't finish in 2001.
In addition to the 32 pages of color photos, including many from the Zanardi family albums, Alex Zanardi - My Sweetest Victory also includes the following new features: a foreword by Alex Zanardi's friend and supporter Mario Andretti, a chronology of Alex's racing career, and a new final chapter in which Alex discusses his return to competitive racing in the 2004 European Touring Car Championship driving for BMW Team Italy-Spain.
Alex Zanardi - My Sweetest Victory is an inspiring book about how personal strength and passion can triumph over even the most challenging circumstances—an autobiography whose significance extends far beyond the world of motorsports.
Table of Contents
- Foreword by Mario Andretti
- The Darkest Day
- Childhood Days
- Getting Started in Karts
- World Championship Karting
- Racing in Formula 3 and 3000
- Formula 1—At Last
- The Lotus Years
- Time Out, and an Introduction to IndyCar
- A Good Start in CART, and Marriage
- CART Championship Victory Number One
- CART Championship Again, and a Son is Born
- A Return to Formula 1
- A Sabbatical and Back to CART
- The Big One
- The Road to Recovery
- The Race Completed
- Afterword
- Author's Note
- Alex Zanardi Chronology
- Map of Italy
- Map of Germany
- Index
- Art Credits
About the Author
Alessandro "Alex" Zanardi was born in Bologna, Italy, in 1966. He began racing karts in 1980 and made his formula 1 debut eleven years later with Team Jordan. In 1996 he joined Ganassi Racing to compete in the CART Series and moved to the United States. He won consecutive CART championships in 1997 and 1998 before returning to Formula 1 in 1999 with Team Williams. In 2001 he rejoined the CART series with Mo Nunn Racing. On September 15, 2001, he lost his legs in a dramatic crash during a race at the EuroSpeedway in Lausitz, Germany. In May 2003, after 19 months of rehabiliation, Zanardi began his comeback in a modified Champ Car for 13 exhibition laps at the EuroSpeedway to complete the tragic 2001 race. In October 2003 he returned to competition at Monza, Italy, in the European Touring Car Championship series, driving a specially modifiedBMW touring car. In 2004 he raced the full ETCC season for BMW Team Italy-Spain.
Zanardi lives in Padova, Italy, with his wife Daniela and son, Niccolo.
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