Roland Ratzenberger became only 34 years old. Although his accidental death on April 30, 1994, in Imola was able to track several thousand people live and in real-time, his death is often forgotten. After all, motorsport legend Ayrton Senna died on the same racetrack a day later. Of course, this overshadows a lot. Nevertheless, the Austrian motor sportsman Roland Ratzenberger is by no means forgotten. Anyone who was too small in 1994 to remember the terrible scenes from the television or to refresh their memories has had the opportunity to do so for some time. The motorsport filmmaker Peter Levay published a German documentary about the life, aspiration and death of Formula 1 driver Roland Ratzenberger in 2019. In addition to family “archive” recordings, numerous contemporary witnesses enrich the documentation, including the Ratzenberger family (Roland’s parents) and former colleagues and companions, such as Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Walter Lechner, Gerhard Berger and Karl Wendlinger. The whole thing is available on Amazon Prime Video, with a paid Prime membership, the 41-minute film can even be watched free of charge.
Click on the following link for the movie “Roland Ratzenberger – The long road to short happiness”: amazon.de/gp/video/detail/B07QG3RT6L
Furthermore, this weekend my thematic focus will be on the Imola race track, with pictures of the Ayrton Senna Memorial, the one for Gilles Villeneuve, the Roland Ratzenberger memorial, and the museum at the race track in Imola “MAICC Museo Multimedia Autodromo di Imola – Checco Costa “. Stay tuned for more!
Roland Ratzenberger – The long way to short happiness (Trailer 2019)
On the weekend of May 1, 1994, two racing drivers lost their lives in Imola. In addition to the three-time world champion Ayrton Senna from Brazil, Roland Ratzenberger from Salzburg died just one day earlier in training. The public only took note of the Salzburg man’s accidental death as a side note. Only a few know his unique career and promotion to Formula 1 .
– “Roland Ratzenberger – The long way to short happiness” by Peter Levay
More about Peter Levay on his homepage or his YouTube channel.
