How the Senna myth has been transformed

During the quarter of a century since the sickening image of the blue-and-white Williams striking the Tamburello wall was broadcast to a global audience of millions, Ayrton Senna has been transformed. On 1 May 1994 he was already a racing superstar, regarded justifiably by many as the greatest of his generation, but since then the name Senna has grown into so much more. It's a global brand, a name on countless T-shirts and caps in every corner of the globe that stands for something, even for those who've never so much as watched a racing car in anger.

Those five letters, S-E-N-N-A, have become iconic, an idea, a philosophy of racing that transcends the name of a mere mortal. He has become less a man, more a god who walked among us for 34 years before his very public ascent to the heavens. For a generation, Senna is not merely a great racing driver but so much more than that. Senna has escaped the limitations of his own sport to become a hallowed figure. The legend has overwhelmed the memory.