Two and a half minutes before death

The photo was taken on May 12, 1957 in Cavriana, Italy, near Verona. The woman in the picture is Mexican actress Linda Christian, 34 years old and divorced her husband, popular Hollywood actor Tyler Power, a year ago. The man in the picture is Spanish aristocrat Alfonso de Portago, 28 years old, a famous athlete, a bronze medalist at the Bobsleigh World Championship and a serious racing driver who won the Formula 1 podium. He is married twice and has three children between one and four years of age.

Alfonso de Portago is now third at the famous 1957 Mille Miglia race. The winner, Piero Taruffi in a Ferrari, will cover her 1,597-kilometer distance in 10 hours and 27 minutes. Alfonso de Portago is not traveling alone — he is a mechanic and co-driver, who also play for Scuderia Ferrari. About half of the race is over — 5 hours and 17 minutes. Alfonso stopped at the fence to kiss his girlfriend Linda Christian, who was waiting for him in the very town of Cavriana through which the highway passed.

A few seconds after the kiss, de Portago will step on the gas and jump back into action. In two and a half minutes, his Ferrari 335 S tire will burst, at which point de Portago will be driving at about 240 km/h. At full throttle, the car will fly off the road, knock down a kilometer-long pole and fly apart. The pilot and mechanic will die, and Alfonso de Portagos body will be torn in two. The car will kill seven adult spectators of the race, and a pole thrown aside — two children.

This will be the last Mille Miglia in history. Due to the incident, the race will be banned forever.

Previously in Old Photos: Brezhnev and Honecker, Kings and Presidents.