The green lush carpet of grass leads you to the centre of the cemetery where the vast amount of flower bouquets are the highest in number. You start to grow mysterious feelings within you, feelings of love and respect towards the lost soul. Throughout the world, he has created millions of fans with his deeds and his sheer love for speed. He is none other than Ayrton Senna, the greatest ever Formula 1 driver. Even after 20 years of his tragic death, the number of fans and followers visiting his graveyard is still the highest among all the sporting heroes of the world.
The Morumby Cemetery is situated around 20 kilometres from the center of Sao Paulo and the taxi driver who drove us to the cemetery confirmed that the legacy of Senna is still alive. Genilson, in his mid-fifties, has seen Senna many times and his love for the former F1 world champion was still alive. “Massivo, Umo, Insubstituível” were the Portuguese words that he used to describe the champion. In English they translate to “great, number one and irreplaceable”. He said emotionally that Senna had a big heart and nobody could replace him. It was amazing to see the teardrops in the corner of his eyes.
Tourists still flock to the grave of Senna and it was evident in the number of flower bouquets placed around the grave which has a typical bronze plate flashing the name of the champion, his birth and death dates. Senna was a devoted Catholic and the plate explains that nothing could separate him from the love of God.
Genilson was still wiping out the tears from the corner of his eyes when he subtly took the Brazilian flag that was placed by a follower. Carefully, he planted it again.
The scene was quite touching. I was amazed to find a few teardrops within my eyes. I asked myself what drew me here. I have never seen Ayrton Senna and just read about his heroic deeds. Why was he so attractive and what would be the heights he would have reached if he was still alive today? Why was Senna so popular?
It was Senna who expressed concern over the widespread poverty in Brazil. After his death it was discovered that he had quietly donated millions of his personal fortune (estimated at around $400m) to help out poor children. Shortly before his death, he created the framework for an organisation dedicated to Brazilian children which later came to be known as the Instituto Ayrton Senna.
After his death, his sister, Viviane Senna, set up the IAS in his honor which has invested nearly $80m over the last twelve years through social programmes and actions in partnership with schools, government, NGOs and the private sector aimed at offering children and teenagers from low-income backgrounds to grow up as skilled human beings.
Senna’s legacy was symbolised within a few minutes. Tokishito Tagi and her husband arrived at the cemetery to pay tribute to the hero. They live in Singapore but are of Japanese descent. They have seen Senna driving many times. Tagi was and still is a die-hard fan of Senna. She shed a few teardrops for the lost hero. “I was 18 in 1994 when Senna died. We arrived in Brazil to see the World Cup and to pay tribute to him. We have the return flight this evening, still, we rushed to see the spot,” said Tagi.
Senna remains a national hero in Brazil and his grave attracts more visitors than the graves of John F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley combined.
Around 3m people were present when Senna was buried after a 20-km funeral walk. The heritage is still alive. Senna sleeps peacefully in the green amidst the birds chirping and whistling away. And the fans – they still cry for him.