Alex Zanardi stable but in serious condition after handbike crash

ROME — The condition of former Formula One driver and twice Champ Car champion Alex Zanardi remained stable but serious, a hospital statement said on Monday, after he suffered severe head injuries in a road accident involving a truck while racing his handbike in Italy on Friday.

"The third night of hospitalization in intensive care has passed without variations," said the Santa Maria alle Scotte hospital in Siena. "The clinical conditions therefore remain unchanged in the cardio-respiratory and metabolic parameters, while the neurological picture remains serious."

It added that the 53-year-old Italian was still under sedation, intubated and breathing with the help of a ventilator.

Zanardi is an inspirational figure in the worlds of motorsport and Paralympic sports, a hugely popular and positive competitor who returned from life-changing injuries with a smile.

Both legs were amputated above the knee, and his heart stopping seven times as he lost all but a liter of the blood in his body in a horrific crash in a 2001 Champ Car crash at the Lausitzring in Germany.

Last year, Zanardi competed in the prestigious Rolex 24 at Daytona endurance race, driving in a race for the first time without prosthetics. He used a special steering wheel designed for him by BMW that allowed him to drive with hand levers.