Dutch racer Loek Hartog: 'Anyone would've done what I did' after pulling Ollie Millroy from burning car
Dutch GT driver Loek Hartog pulled fellow racer Ollie Millroy from a burning car in Shanghai last month, then downplayed his heroism. Here's what he told us.
Last month in Shanghai, Loek Hartog did something most people only see in movies. The 24-year-old Dutch driver ripped open a burning car and dragged his fellow racer Ollie Millroy to safety, probably saving his life in the process. Now, sitting in an Amsterdam park on a dark October morning, Hartog seems almost uncomfortable talking about it.
"I'm no special guy," he says, sipping coffee. "We can all do this." But the facts don't quite match his modesty. When Millroy crashed during a China GT race, his car caught fire. Hartog didn't hesitate. He tore the doors off the vehicle like they were cardboard and pulled the 36-year-old Briton out, then stayed with him, trying to calm him down while emergency crews arrived.
Millroy walked away with six broken ribs, a damaged lung, a fractured collarbone, a broken hand, and a fractured C6 neck vertebra. Any one of those injuries could've ended him. Most of them together easily could have.
The two drivers barely knew each other before Shanghai. Now they're bonded by something most people never experience—literally owing someone your life. Hartog doesn't want the credit, doesn't want to be called brave. He just keeps saying that in that moment, you don't think. You just act. The world's in rough shape right now—wars, chaos, uncertainty. But Hartog's instinct to help another human being, no questions asked, felt like something worth remembering.
The incident's also sparked a conversation between them about racing safety. Millroy's injuries could've been fatal if things had gone slightly differently. Hartog survived the crash itself, but what if he hadn't been nearby? Both drivers are now pushing for improvements in how circuits handle post-crash situations and how cars are built to protect occupants in fires.
Hartog shrugs when you try to make him a hero. Says he was just in the right place at the right time. Says anyone with a conscience would've done the same. Maybe he's right. Or maybe he's just the kind of person who doesn't need to think twice about helping someone else, even when it's risky.
