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What started as a scary scene during a car race has become a remarkable display of heroism. During the first race of the China GT in Shanghai, driver Ollie Millroy was in a bad crash following a collision between two other cars, causing his Ferrari to burst into flames. The impact was so bad that he lost consciousness, preventing him from escaping from the burning car. Concerned, rival driver Loek Hartog rushed to help him despite the danger posed by the fire. As such, Millroy now credits Hartog with saving his life.
“I am still alive tonight, entirely thanks to one man,” Millroy wrote on Instagram. “Loek Hartog stopped instantly with no flag marshalls or fire crews in sight, and risked his own life to get me out of the car. I don’t remember anything between 30 seconds before the crash and 1 hour after it, but I will remember his incredible act of bravery for the rest of my life. One day I will tell our three kids this story and Loek will be the biggest superhero in history in their eyes too.”
For Hartog, a 23-year-old driver from the Netherlands, there was never a moment of doubt as to whether he should have stepped in. Fearing Millory wouldn’t be able to get out of his car without aid, the Dutch racer took a fire extinguisher from an official nearby, put out the flames as best as the situation allowed, and pulled out the injured driver from the wreckage.
Moved by Millroy’s heroism, Hartog commented, “You have nothing to thank me for. I wish to live in a world where this would not be considered as bravery but as instinct of others too. I am so thankful to have been right at the place I needed to be in space and time. Speedy recovery and we will stay in close touch.”
In addition to the concussion that caused him to black out for over an hour after the crash, Millroy sustained six broken ribs, a broken collar bone, a broken hand and finger, and a punctured lung. “But it could have been much worse,” he said. A CT scan has also revealed a small fracture in his neck, which will require rehabilitation and physiotherapy going forward. Still, he has shown some positive updates from the hospital, sharing his road back to health.
Meanwhile, Hartog wants to turn the attention this has gotten into a larger conversation about making car racing safer. “People have called me a hero, and I appreciate what they mean, but people do extraordinary things for others every day. This so happened to be on camera, and what a camera has given us now is an opportunity to help somebody else,” he said on Instagram.
“For somebody to survive an impact that severe, shows how far safety in our sport has come,” Hartog continued. “But when a driver can’t get themselves out of a burning car, everything depends on the help that reaches them. We want to understand what more can be done exactly in those moments. We don’t have the solution, but this community has so much knowledge, experience, and willingness to help, we want to bring that together and see where we can make a real difference.”
To stay up to date with these fearless drivers, you can follow Ollie Millroy and Loek Hartog on Instagram.
Driver Ollie Millroy was in a bad car crash following a collision between two other cars during the China GT, causing his Ferrari to burst into flames.
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Rival driver Loek Hartog rushed to help him despite the danger posed by the fire. Millroy now credits Hartog with saving his life.
Ver esta publicación en Instagram
“I am still alive tonight, entirely thanks to one man,” Millroy wrote on Instagram. “One day I will tell our three kids this story and Loek will be the biggest superhero in history in their eyes too.”
Ver esta publicación en Instagram
Now, Hartog wants to turn the attention this incident has gotten into a larger conversation about making car racing safer.
Ver esta publicación en Instagram
Loek Hartog: Instagram
Ollie Millroy: Instagram
Source: Race driver Ollie Millroy thanks rival Loek Hartog for saving his life by pulling him from burning Ferrari during China GT race in Shanghai; It's a miracle – fireball crash victim Millroy praises rescuer Hartog
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