Toyota mourn death of Ove Andersson

Toyota have expressed their profound sadness at the untimely death of their former Formula One team principal Ove Andersson, aged 70. Andersson was involved in an accident whilst competing in the Milligan Vintage Trial in South Africa, when the classic car he was driving suffered a frontal collision around a blind corner. Tadashi Yamashina, Chairman of Toyota Motorsport GmbH, said: "Everyone at Toyota is extremely shocked and truly saddened at this terrible news. Ove was an inspiration to our team and to many in motorsport. His passion for motorsport was legendary and he is a great loss to our sport. The thoughts of everyone at Toyota Motorsport are with Ove's family at this difficult time." Andersson was instrumental in the founding of Toyota Team Europe, which grew out of his own Andersson Motorsport squad. Toyota Team Europe later relocated to Cologne in Germany, and became Toyota Motorsport GmbH in 1993. Under his leadership, Toyota successfully competed in the World Rally Championship, winning four drivers' and three manufacturers' championships, and took second place at the 1999 Le Mans 24 Hours. He led Toyota Racing into Formula One in 2002 before retiring as team principal in 2003 to work as a consultant for the team.