In his typical fighting spirit, living legend Alex Zanardi showed that not even the most serious of accidents can keep him down. The Italian racing driver and Paralympics champion left the hospital recently after almost 18 months, following his unfortunate accident while training for a triathlon. He will continue the tedious recovery process at home from now on, according to his wife, Daniela Zanardi.

Speaking about the situation in a recent interview, Daniela said: “The recovery continues to be a long process. The rehabilitation program led by doctors, physiotherapists, neuropsychologists and speech therapists has enabled steady progress. Of course, setbacks are there and can still occur. Sometimes you also have to make two steps back in order to make one step forward. But Alex proves again and again that he is a real fighter.”

According to her, even though Alex was released from the hospital, he will still undergo temporary stays in special clinics in order to make sure he gets everything he needs. Even so, the fact that he was able to leave the hospital and go home is a big step forward. Unfortunately, the current Coronavirus situation meant that Alex couldn’t be reunited with his whole family or friends. For the past 18 months, the only people he saw were his wife, son and mother and things will remain the same for the time being.

As for the future, it’s still hard to say how things will develop. “It is still a long and challenging way that Alex tackles with a lot of fighting spirit. It is a big help for him and us that we receive so much support on this way, not only from the doctors and therapists that intensively work with him. Our friends are always there for us. This includes the BMW Group family which we can always count on and that is firmly at our side also in this difficult time. We are very grateful to everyone for that and for so much more because these strong ties give us additional energy,” said Daniela.

“This also goes for the continued sympathy we receive from racing drivers, fans and acquaintances from all over the world. We would like to express a big Grazie to all who send their good thoughts and power to Alex. We wish everybody a merry Christmas and all the best for the new year,” she added.