By Sahar Foladi
A 15-year old Dandenong racer will chase his dreams to Malaysia in September to become part of the Ferrari Driver Academy.
Giancarlo Artho has been chosen among 23 other professional go-kart racers from the Asia Pacific and Oceania to compete for the coveted 2023 Ferrari Driver Academy.
“Growing up I watched Formula One with my dad and from that moment I thought that’s what I want to do when I grow up.
“My dad used to take me to go-kart races and every time I would be amazed watching the race,” he said.
“Eventually we bought a very old go-kart and I had so much fun driving it around.
“Slowly I got better and racked up some achievements so here I am now.”
However, one of his biggest hurdles stands in the middle of his dreams, the staggering financial costs of the competition.
“When we got the news, we all panicked, how were we going to make this happen?” his mother Luci Tassone said.
“The first thing I did was I went to the bank to see if I can get a loan.”
As a small business owner in Dandenong South, the family are already struggling under the immense pressure of inflation just like many others.
Despite the challenge, the family are determined to make this work.
“The competitors he’s up against are people that are cashed up, who have resources thrown at them and money is no issue.
“They’ve had the best of the best cars, equipment, coaches and mechanics employed for them. He’s up against that,” Ms Tassone said.
“Whereas he has had second-hand equipment, second-hand vehicles and second-hand materials his whole life.”
Mr Artho has not even sat in the F4 Tatuus GEN race-car that he’s required to drive and test in.
Although there are predicted $50,000 costs for the competition, that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The ticket in the competition costs roughly $24,000. To try out in the vehicle he’s tested in when they’re in Sepang Malaysia is roughly $14,000 in landing costs.
“We financially cannot make it happen without the support of sponsors. We haven’t even factored fares, accommodation, the equipment needed for the competition, the high-risk insurance cover and costs of a coach to mentally and physically prepare him for the competition,” Ms Tassone said.
“It’s a massive stretch for us but we know we have to make this happen for him.”
Thankfully, father Tony Artho is a diesel mechanic which comes in handy to keep Mr Artho’s outdated vehicle maintained.
A Go Fund Me page is set up for donations with $50,000 set as the goal.
So far the page has reached $2,810 in 12 days with the majority of the funds from family and close friends.
Lyndale Secondary College, where Mr Artho attends school, also contributed a small amount through the Go Fund Me page.
Assistant principal Luke Wilson said the school will endeavour to help the bright and active student as much as they can through alternative ways.
“It’s pleasing that he’s rewarded with such an opportunity and as a school we are very proud of him.
“We’ll be supporting him through our school council, we’ll promote this through our school website, compass and electronic school board for the community.”
Mr Artho is a known figure both inside school communities and outside the school as an active member of the Greater Dandenong community.
“What’s really pleasing about him is that he socialises with a lot of different groups of students whether in music, sports, in his class so he’s a leader and people can see what he does,” Mr Wilson said.
He’s in the Selected Entry Accelerated Learning program, with a special interest in maths, science and English because of their correlation with racing.
At the impressive age of six in 2014 he started racing and had his first competition at the age of seven.
He has earned a string of achievements starting off with second position at the 2016 and 2017 Club Championships at Oakleigh Go Kart Club and was the winner in the 2017 Class Titles at the club.
Although Covid slowed down the pace, he was quick to get back on the track and won the 2023 Go Kart of Victorian Championships. He is positioned as the leader for this year.
“He has always been passionate and worked very hard towards anything he sets his mind to. He’s worked very hard on so many levels to be where he is now,” his mother Ms Tassone said.
“He’s very active in the community and always gives back to the community through mentoring younger children whether in primary school or through his go karting club.”
Now he’s in need of the local community support to help him break down the standing hurdle in his way.
“I’ve very excited for this competition but nervous at the same time because this is my dream and I’m up against the top skilled drivers selected,” Mr Artho said.
“I’ve been obsessed with Ferrari ever since I was little, it’s all that I was about.”
Although he has an Italian heritage, Mr Artho didn’t know the language till he found out selected drivers will travel to Italy for another face-off after the competition in Malaysia.
To help, go to https://giancarloartho34.wixsite.com/ga34 or https://gofund.me/a1330604
Alternatively, Luci Tassone can be contacted on 0450 070 375.
