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Lewis Hamilton has praised the introduction of a new Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) charter agreed upon by all 10 Formula 1 teams, three years on from influential proposals published by The Hamilton Commission.
Earlier this week it was revealed that the teams, alongside Formula 1 and the FIA, had all signed the charter which aims to improve diversity and inclusion across the motorsport sector and create lasting positive changes.
READ MORE: New Diversity and Inclusion charter agreed by all 10 F1 teams, Formula 1, and the FIA
The charter is rooted in recommendations made by The Hamilton Commission in 2021 – the report concluded that less than 1% of people in motorsport come from Black backgrounds, and offered 10 recommendations to improve diversity in the industry.
These will now be implemented in Formula 1 with the support of The Royal Academy of Engineering, which supported the original research, and the charity that Hamilton set up to empower young people, Mission 44.
Talking about the impact this charter will have, Hamilton said: “Honestly, so proud and grateful to FOM, to F1, who have really pushed to make sure that it’s got across the line. Obviously it’s been three years in the making trying to push the sport in that positive direction.
“It’s already been great to see that F1 have decided to invite kids and create opportunities. I’m really grateful to all the teams signing on and the FIA. I didn’t know when or if it was ever going to happen so it makes me really proud to know that the work we’ve done wasn’t a waste.
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“We’ll work closely with them and I’ll continue to work closely with F1 and the FIA over the following years to just make sure we continue to move in the right direction. Creating opportunities for people, doesn’t matter where you’re from or what you look like – I think that’s really key.”
The promising announcement comes as Hamilton approaches his final two races with Mercedes – the team have sought to support the seven-time world champion in his efforts to improve diversity throughout his 12-year stint with them.
The Brackley outfit have had a rollercoaster of a season, with the 39-year-old admitting that he didn’t want to come back after the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, but he is keen to use the momentum from Mercedes’ 1-2 finish in Las Vegas to end 2024 on a high.
“I don’t particularly feel very emotional right this second, no,” the Briton said when asked about rounding off his time with the Brackley outfit. “I’ve had a whole year so it’s been emotional through the whole year.
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“I would say that I’m less emotional in this moment but yesterday I was with IWC and they showed me a video of since 2013 and it was emotional. Sat down with Bono just now and we were like ‘this is our last two races together, can you believe it?’.
“There’s going to be so many of those moments in these next two weeks where we’re like ‘shoot, this is nearly it’. I can’t tell you when that’s going to be or how it’s going to feel. It’s definitely going to feel odd, it’s definitely sad, but we’ll try not to let that deter us from our job which is to try and win these last two races if possible.”
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