Photo: Ennoti via CC
Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton has been named the U.K.’s most influential Black person after he set a record-breaking year in the sport while campaigning against racial inequality.
Hamilton, who earned his seventh championship title two days ago at the Turkish Grand Prix, topped the Powerlist 2021, which recognizes the U.K.’s most incredible people with African, African American, and African Caribbean heritage.
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The list was compiled by an independent judging panel that looked at people who showed the “ability to change lives and alter events, as demonstrated over a protracted period of time and in a positive manner.”
So far in 2020, Hamilton set a new all-time record for race wins in F1 and tied Michael Schumacher’s record for drivers’ championships, which was once thought to be almost insurmountable. But Hamilton has also done more than just show off his amazing driving skills.
The Brit is the sport’s only Black driver and, especially since the death of George Floyd, has used his superstar status to support the Black Lives Matter movement. In June, he encouraged fellow drivers to take a knee before races, and later launched The Hamilton Commission, which aims to increase the number of Black people in motorsports.
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Second on the list was Professor Kevin Fenton, who has been instrumental in the U.K.’s fight against the coronavirus, followed by artist and philanthropist Stormzy. The F1 champion said it was “an absolute honor” to be mentioned alongside Fenton, Stormzy, and the other six individuals listed on the Powerlist 2021.
“Everyone on this list is so inspiring and leading in their own industry,” Hamilton said. “I am so proud to be acknowledged, especially within the black community…I like to think that I’m just a part of a chain of many people trying to push for change.”
Kurt Verlin was born in France and lives in the United States. Throughout his life he was always told French was the language of romance, but it was English he fell in love with. He likes cats, music, cars, 30 Rock, Formula 1, and pretending to be a race car driver in simulators; but most of all, he just likes to write about it all. See more articles by Kurt.
