Lewis Hamilton has said he doesn’t care if he doesn’t win another race as long as he uses his platform to speak out.
The 38-year-old Formula One champion appeared on The Fast and the Curious podcast with Christian Hewgill, where Christian praised the athlete for standing up for LGBT rights.
Lewis responded by explaining how he feels “responsible” to speak out on issues that are transforming society.
Christian was enthusiastic: “You paved the way in Formula 1 to talk about certain topics that were not talked about before.
“A small example. Avid F1 fan. I’m a sports broadcaster. I’m also gay. Coming out in the sports world was something I struggled with as a child.
Responsibility: Lewis Hamilton said he doesn’t care if he doesn’t win another race as long as he uses his platform to speak out
“They went to Hungary in 2021 and campaigned for LGBT rights. I wanted to thank you It means the world. It makes such a difference.
“What made you decide to do this? Because surely not all top athletes like you.”
Lewis replied, “Well, thank you. And personally I want to compliment you. It’s a challenging journey, isn’t it?’
“For me… I always say we need more empathy and compassion in the world.
“We are all human and there are all these things that challenge people in different countries through governments, people with opinions, social media, all these different things.
“We have this platform and I just feel a lot of responsibility. I’m not just a Formula 1 driver and I can’t just be successful and just live my life.
“It’s a platform to initiate change, to start conversations. Initiating these uncomfortable conversations and then holding people accountable in the past for being content with the status quo leaves people stuck and feeling like they don’t belong.’
He continued: “It frustrates me. We can make changes and I want to be a part of making people feel more involved. Our sport, motorsport or any sport or business should not be able to continue unless we are diverse.
“There are so many different things that we have to challenge and solve. We also go to a lot of countries that have these challenging human rights issues where people are just not treated as people. And people just walked by.
He emphasized: “It is so important that someone talks about this. I don’t care if I don’t win another race – I’m going to talk about these things and whether people like them or not.’
Reflecting on the chatter after the interview, Christian said: “I’m actually a bit emotional – more than I thought.”
“I didn’t think I would dare to talk about my sexuality in the sports world. And for Sir Lewis Hamilton to commend you on your journey…I didn’t really know what to say about that. It’s crazy.
‘It hurts. There are people who say that sports and politics should not mix and all that shit. But Lewis summed it up simply that sometimes it’s not about politics, it’s about people’s lives. And it’s about people being able to be who they are.
“I probably didn’t come out for four or five years after I probably first suspected I was gay. And that was largely because I was involved in motorsport.
“I wouldn’t have forgiven myself if I hadn’t told him. It means the absolute world that he reacted the way he did.
Speaking: The 38-year-old Formula One champion appeared on The Fast and the Curious podcast with Christian Hewgill, where Christian praised the athlete for speaking out for LGBT rights.
Platform: Lewis responded by explaining how he feels “responsible” to speak out on issues that are transforming society
“It’s very easy for people to look at this and think, well, it’s just sports. It makes no difference. It does.
And I hope if there are engineers who want to get into F1, drivers, disabled, gay, whatever, black, white, you can do whatever you want. You can be who you want to be.
And it is people like Lewis Hamilton who make people understand this. If I realized 15 years ago that I, you could be a game, a sports writer.
“Maybe I could have saved money for therapy, and if he talked it would mean a lot.”
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Ashley Root is an author and celebrity journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a keen eye for all things celebrity, Ashley is always up-to-date on the latest gossip and trends in the world of entertainment.
