Hamilton demands more - Where it all began: Diversity in Formula 1
Lewis Hamilton is still the only black driver, with a woman in a team cockpit not even in distant view. What is Formula 1 really like nowadays? There are apologies and efforts, initiatives and projects. "It's one thing to say something is inclusive, it's another to create an environment where the affected feel free and comfortable," says Lewis Hamilton.
Formula 1 is a space dominated by men. Still. "We can do so much more," emphasizes the 39-year-old British driver. A team principal there is not currently, but there are women in significant positions, such as Red Bull's strategist Hannah Schmitz. "It was hard being one of the first women to sit in the command stand," the Briton once said.
His compatriot Hamilton is like Michael Schumacher with seven titles, the record world champion of the motor racing elite class. He is also a pioneer in the fight against racism and for equality and diversity.
Hamilton looks back
That Michael Schumacher's brother Ralf Schumacher recently came out publicly as gay, Hamilton describes as a "positive message." In 2007, he also raced against the now 49-year-old. It was Hamilton's first and Ralf Schumacher's last season in the racing series, which for many decades was shaped by the macho and male image. "He obviously didn't feel good about it back then," Hamilton remarked.
That it's not like that anymore is also due to the Briton and his former rival Sebastian Vettel. "The change began here, when I stood on the grid with Seb and we fought against what the government did," Hamilton recalled about the Hungarian Grand Prix three years ago.
Vettel wore a rainbow-colored T-shirt with the inscription "Same Love" at the start of the race - and he was warned for it. From the race director it was said that the pilots had been given the opportunity to show their support for the official Formula 1 campaign "We race as one" before the start. The hymn of the host country should be respected, the drivers were to wear their racing suits for.
But it's exactly at moments when cameras are on the drivers that statements have a large reach. At the end of 2022, the World Council even added a new article to the International Sports Code that prohibits the display of political messages without prior approval. A form of protest with the handbrake.
Ralf Schumacher criticized Hamilton for his protests
Vettel, like Hamilton, took a stance on a planned referendum against the rights of non-heterosexual people (LGBT) in Hungary. It's shameful for the country, Schumacher said. Beforehand, Hamilton had used the global stage of Formula 1, which the organizers cashed in for racing events in the two-digit million range, to make political statements.
Hamilton also pointed out violations of human rights on the open Formula 1 stage, which seemed unthinkable for a long time and also earned him criticism from Ralf Schumacher. "His values are important and he can represent them on Instagram and in other social networks - the question is just why he has to do it in the Mercedes suit and at the racetracks," Schumacher said in November 2020 on Sport1. "Even if Ralf thought it was a bad idea to do such things, he may have changed his mind today." Hamilton now in Budapest.
Ralf Schumacher paved the way for others with his coming-out, praised the Brit. But there is still a long way to go for Formula 1, which has written the commitment to more diversity and inclusion in its statutes and dedicated a separate story on its homepage to the reactions to Ralf Schumacher's step.
Stereotypes of a testosterone-driven and controlled male domain should be dismantled. Despite the existence of the F1 Academy since 2023 under Susie Wolff's leadership, the prospects for a female pilot on the Formula 1 grid, where Grid Girls no longer exist since 2018, are still limited. However, there are also statistical reasons: There are simply many more boys than girls in karting, and in the end, there are only 20 cockpits in Formula 1.
- Lewis Hamilton commends Michael Schumacher's brother Ralf Schumacher for publicly acknowledging his homosexuality as a "positive message."
- Sebastian Vettel, Hamilton's former rival in Formula-1, joined forces with him to challenge discriminatory government policies during the Hungarian Grand Prix.
- Vettel wore a rainbow-colored T-shirt with the phrase "Same Love" at the start of the race, which resulted in a warning from the race director.
- Protests during races can have a significant impact, especially when cameras are focused on the drivers.
- The World Council added a new article to the International Sports Code in late 2022, prohibiting the display of political messages without prior approval.
- Ralf Schumacher criticized Hamilton for his political statements during races, but later acknowledged the importance of his actions.
- Hamilton's advocacy for diversity and inclusion in Formula-1 has earned him both praise and criticism.
- In 2023, Susie Wolff will lead the F1 Academy, which aims to provide opportunities for female drivers to break into the Formula-1 grid.
- Despite efforts to promote diversity, the number of women in Formula-1 remains limited due to the predominance of males in karting and the limited number of available cockpits in the elite class.
