Officials for Formula One issued a statement today condemning racism after a former world champion driver directed a racist slur at English driver Lewis Hamilton.
The Brazilian former champion called Hamilton a racial slur as he criticized his performance.
Hamilton made a response on Twitter today saying, “It’s more than language. These archaic mindsets need to change and have no place in our sport. I’ve been surrounded by these attitudes and targeted my whole life. There has been plenty of time to learn. Time has come for action.”
Formula One released a statement saying, “Discriminatory or racist language is unacceptable in any form and has no part in society. Lewis is an incredible ambassador for our sport and deserves respect.”
F1 stopped short of naming the former champion.
This isn’t the first time an F1 competitor used a racial slur. Last week, another F1 driver was also suspended for two weeks and admonished for using the N-word during a livestream.
More about the controversy can be found here.
Opinion: Popular European sports are rife with racism. Football (European) officials have been taking steps to tamp racist vitriol aimed at players coming from the fellow athletes, coaches and fans. There are too many to even keep up with. In the case of this former F1 world champion, he’s probably jealous of Hamilton’s success and spotlight — he’s known and beloved around the world. He’s also currently the only Black F1 driver. Hamilton is right that action should be taken. This former world champion should have his titles stripped or wiped from F1’s record books. Resorting to racism to convey how you feel, even if you’re being critical, always makes you the loser.
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