Hamilton: I had to work twice as hard as others

Lewis Hamilton, who participated in the On Purpose podcast, spoke about the formation of his character, emphasizing that the school years were the most difficult and traumatic period of his life.

“I was harassed when I was six years old,” said the Mercedes driver. “At that particular school, I was one of three boys with a different skin color, and the boys who were older and stronger often insulted me.

At another school, there were six or seven black children among the 1,200 students, and three of us were constantly called to the principal. The principal of the school was just against us, especially me. I really felt like the whole system was hostile to me and I had to swim against the current.

It seemed to me that when I returned home, I could not complain to my parents that they were teasing me, that I was again offended at school. I didn’t want my dad to think I was weak…

At the same time, it seemed to me that if I succeeded in racing, it would please my father, and I thought that if I won, then I would be accepted by society. But for this I had to work twice as hard as others, to always be the first. I used to joke that if you’re not first, you’ve already lost.

Although, of course, in my life I did not always win everything. But gradually I realized that when you achieve success, everything is so fleeting! I win the race, come home after a very stressful weekend and over the next two days I gradually come to my senses, trying to balance my emotional state.

It was very important for me to learn how to manage my emotions, and in recent years I have started to look at everything differently. I see life more broadly and I know there are things more important than winning races. So I try to fight for the world to change for the better.”

Recently, Lewis Hamilton has used all his authority to make motorsport a more diverse and democratic environment. He founded the so-called “Hamilton Commission”, which investigates the reasons why minorities are almost unrepresented in motorsport, and tries to support young people from low-income families through the Mission 44 fund.