Loek Hartog calls on the motorsport community for brainstorming

– Wherever he went during last weekend’s Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS): thumbs up and praise were his constant companions. But in the Sunday race on the Nürburgring Nordschleife, at least sportingly, a hard setback followed: Loek Hartog on the way.

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Therefore, he loses his “Nordschleife driver’s license,” the DMSB Permit Nordschleife (DPN). He must skip the NLS finale and can only reapply for the permit in winter. As a driver, he will also be retroactively disqualified from the race and thus will not appear in the official classification once it is published.

His teammates Michael Christensen and Loris Cabirou, who shared the Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) from Dinamic Motorsport with the Dutchman, will be classified in ninth place. They originally finished eighth, but the 138-second penalty for the offense cost the trio one position in the overall standings.

Emotional video message from Millroy’s wife

It was a somewhat inglorious end to an eventful week for the Porsche driver after his heroic deed at the Shanghai International Circuit the previous weekend. Hartog came into the focus of international media overnight and gave numerous interviews. In the Saturday race of the NLS double-header, he was crowned driver of the day by the fans.

Especially emotional was his appearance earlier in the talk show Renze. The Dutch broadcaster RTL4 played a video message from Ollie Millroy’s wife Fern, in which she addressed Hartog directly. Tears visibly welled up in the 23-year-old’s eyes – and surely in many viewers’ as well.

“Hey Loek, thank you so much for everything you have done – not only for saving Ollie’s life but also for all the messages and support since then. It’s incredible. I just want to say how grateful we are that Ollie is alive and now with us. We owe that entirely to you,” says Fern Millroy in her message from Shanghai.

“It’s amazing how much you can love someone you’ve never met. I can’t wait to hug you, spend time with your family, and get to know you. I firmly believe that you are connected to Ollie in some way. You really are a superhero, an angel. We are just so grateful.”

Hartog then explains in the studio what Fern means by “support”: “I actually went straight to the hospital after the race. That was exactly the moment when his memory came back – when he was transferred from one hospital to another.”

“Of course, it’s very emotional when you see each other for the first time. I just hope this is a huge wake-up call. And that the topic doesn’t die down now, but that we can really make a difference.”

Call to the motorsport community for a safety brainstorming

In a separate video on Instagram, Hartog uses his sudden popularity to call for ideas on how motorsport can be made even safer. This also happens against the backdrop of severe accusations against the organizer China GT, who in the meantime has responded with the release of video material in their own defense.

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“To everyone in motorsport and to everyone who became aware of us through the events this weekend in Shanghai: Thank you. Thank you for the support Ollie and I have received; it has been absolutely incredible,” says the Dutchman.

“It has given us the feeling that together we can actually make something meaningful out of this. I’ve been a bit quiet [on my Instagram channel] in the past few days because Ollie’s health and recovery come first for me. But we both want something good to come out of what happened.”

“Personally, I’m doing quite well. I’m coping well, and it feels good to be home again. I have so much support around me; it’s hard to imagine. I’ve given some interviews in the last two days because I want to use this attention to keep the discussion going.”

“How can we make our sport even safer? People call me a hero, and I appreciate what they mean by that. But people do extraordinary things for others every day. This just happened to be in front of the camera. This gives us the opportunity for a message.”

“That someone survives such a severe impact shows how far safety in our sport has come. But if a driver cannot free themselves from a burning car, everything depends on the help that reaches them.”

“We want to understand exactly what can still be done in these moments. We don’t have the one perfect solution, but this community has so much knowledge, experience, and willingness to help.”

“We want to bundle all of this and see where we can make a real difference. We are currently examining how we can organize this properly, possibly through a nonprofit initiative. The idea is to build something that we can all participate in.”

“Drivers, teams, rescuers, engineers, and fans. A place where we can exchange ideas, learn from each other, and support each other in improvements. There is still a lot to research, and we will share the next steps here as soon as they take shape.”

In the end, the conclusion remains: Hartog can reclaim the permit in winter. That would not have been possible for Ollie Millroy’s life.

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