Family, fans to attend requiem for Formula One’s Niki Lauda

VIENNA (AP) — Family, friends and fans have gathered at St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna for a last farewell to Formula One great Niki Lauda.

The wooden coffin of the three-time champion was decorated Wednesday with his red racing helmet and surrounded by six white candles, with two larger-than life portraits of Lauda behind it. The Austrian died May 20 at age 70, less than a year after undergoing a lung transplant.

Lauda, who won two of his Formula One titles after a horrific crash in which he suffered serious burns, later became a prominent figure in the aviation industry and in recent years served as a non-executive chairman of the Mercedes F1 team.

Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, Arnold Schwarzenegger and several Formula One stars were expected to attend the service.