02 Feb RIP SERGIO ABRAHAMS – MR AMBASSADOR OF OVAL TRACK
RIP SERGIO ABRAHAMS – MR AMBASSADOR OF OVAL TRACK
Tributes poured in from all around South Africa at the weekend for Sergio Abrahams – oval track racer, storyteller and event organiser extraordinary – who passed away unexpectedly on 26 January, a few weeks away from his 37th birthday.
Hundreds of friends, colleagues and oval trackers joined his family on the lawn behind the WPMC Clubhouse at Killarney to celebrate his life and achievements, while hundreds more watched on live-stream.
His father Selwyn painted a picture of an outgoing, hardworking boy who became a larger-than-life oval track racer, a master storyteller, a devoted husband and father and a man who could make things happen that others said could not, by bringing people together and inspiring them with his enthusiasm.
As much as Sergio loved oval track racing – a passion born at Goodwood Showgrounds with his grandfather – it was typical of the man that ‘boosting’ the sport and telling the good stories through his ‘Racers Blog’ were more important to him, as was ‘la familia’, not only his wife Amy and one-year-old Tatum, but also the larger family of his oval track friends and work colleagues.
Always available to lend a hand in the pits, nothing was too much trouble for a man who earned enormous respect during a short racing career. Tales were told of phone calls enquiring after their well-being, even during the last week of his life, and of memorable evenings celebrating the events he put together because for Sergio, success was something to be shared.
More than one person shared the quote from James Garrison: ‘There are some who bring a light so great to the world that even after they are gone, the light remains.’
Sergio has left a huge void in oval track racing; our thoughts and prayers are with Amy, Tatum and the family.