The death of Victor Steeman’s mother came only days after his own passing.
The Dutch motorcyclist who crashed in Sunday’s race and died Tuesday was critically injured. He was 22.
Flora van Limbeek, his mother, had a heart attack on Thursday and passed away at her home in the Dutch municipality of Lathum, according to local news outlet Race Sport.
Motorcycle Sports said that Van Limbeek had just returned to her home after witnessing the death of her son.
According to Race Sport, van Limbeek passed away at the age of 59 despite heroic efforts to save her life.
According to a family statement provided to Australian news outlet 7NEWS, “The Steemans need some privacy to deal with their devastating loss.
In this message, we are making a polite but urgent request. So, please refrain from sending any greeting cards or gifts to the Lathum address.”
It continued, “We will come up with a special message about the prospects for this later today to allow everyone the opportunity to voice their sadness and assist father and husband Steeman and another family in this odd and terrible time.”
Willem, Steeman’s father, van Limbeek’s husband, and other members of the family received condolence messages from the rest of the family.
There are no words to ease your pain at such a terrible time, the statement said. As difficult as the future may be, we hope you find the inner fortitude to go through it.
According to the Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), the world governing body of motorcycle racing, Steeman was “engaged in a multi-rider incident at Turn 14” on Saturday during the inaugural race of the World Supersports 300 (WorldSSP300) Championship on October 8 in Portugal.
The rider “was attended to trackside and at the circuit medical facility before being taken by helicopter to Faro Hospital,” according to the statement.
Steeman tragically passed away despite the efforts of the circuit’s medical team, marshals, and hospital staff.
The statement from Steeman’s family was also included in the release, and it stated that after his death, Steeman saved many lives through organ donation.
The family said in a statement, “Something you have always feared as the parent of a motorcycle racer has now happened.”
“The final race was too difficult for our victor to win. And yet, we are glad to tell you that our hero, even in death, was able to save the lives of five other people thanks to the organs he donated.
We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding throughout the previous few days.
Vic has been an integral part of our team and his absence will be greatly felt.”