Chennai: In a tragic incident, 13-year-old racing prodigy Copparam Shreyas Hareesh, succumbed to his injuries sustained during a crash in the third round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship at the Madras International Circuit in Chennai on Saturday.

Following the incident, the event's organizer, Madras Motor Sports Club, cancelled the remaining races that had been planned for both Saturday and Sunday.

Born on July 26, 2010, Shreyas was a student at Kensri School in Bengaluru.

He had been garnering recognition as a budding star due to his impressive performance in motorcycle racing.

He rose to prominence with his success at the National level, securing victory in multiple races, including four consecutive wins in the rookie category of the Petronas TVS One-Make Championship this season.

The accident occurred shortly after the commencement of the rookie race, for which he had secured the pole position earlier that day. While exiting Turn-1, Shreyas had a crash, resulting in a severe head injury.

Promptly responding to the situation, the race was halted through a red flag, and he was immediately transported to a nearby hospital via a trauma care ambulance positioned at the racing circuit.

He was pronounced brought dead on his arrival at the hospital. His father, Copparam Hareesh, was present at his side during his last moments.

"Under the circumstances, we have decided to cancel rest of this weekend's programme. The MMSC offers heartfelt condolences and our thoughts are with his family."

In May, Shreyas had participated in the MiniGP races in Spain after he bagged the MiniGP India title.

He had an upcoming engagement in the MSBK Championship 2023 at the Sepang Circuit in Malaysia for the month of August. He was set to represent team CRA Motorsports in the 250cc category (Group B).

Regrettably, this incident marks the second loss of life within the Indian motorsport community this year. In January, KE Kumar, aged 59 and a prominent figure in the racing world, passed away in a hospital after a crash during the second round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Car Racing Championship 2022 at the Madras International Circuit.