In Imola, Crowds Honor Senna 20 Years After Death

The crowd resembled the kind of gathering normally reserved for a Formula One podium celebration.

Only this time, the thousands in attendance fell silent at exactly 2:17 p.m.

Fans, family members plus fellow and current drivers attended a solemn but also festive memorial Thursday to mark the exact 20th anniversary of Ayrton Senna's death at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.

The ceremony was held on the Imola circuit's Tamburello curve where Senna crashed into a concrete wall at about 300 kph (185 mph). Austrian rookie Roland Ratzenberger, who died in qualifying a day before, was also remembered.

Among those in attendance were Gerhard Berger, Senna's teammate with McLaren, and current Ferrari drivers Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen.

Berger says "I think we all agree that he was the best driver of all time."