Photo: Getty
Lewis Hamilton, the only Black driver in Formula 1 who often uses his platform to raise awareness for social issues, faced racist attacks online after winning a race on Sunday.
At the British Grand Prix, the 36-year-old driver finished in first place after he crashed with competitor Max Verstappen, sending his competitor out of the race and to the hospital.
“Today is a reminder of the dangers we face in this sport and we should never take lightly the risks,” Hamiltonwrote on Instagramafter the race. “I send my best wishes to Max who is an incredible competitor and I’m glad to hear he is ok. I will always race hard but always fairly.”
He added that it was a “dream to win in front of my home crowd” and told fans to “never give up, keep rising, keep fighting.”
Hamilton incurred a 10-second penalty for the crash but still came out victorious.
After he was named the winner, his Instagram and other social media platform were flooded with trolls using racial slurs and monkey emojis against the driver in comment sections, accordingto Sky Sports.
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Verstappen spoke out following his accident, tweeting that he was “very disappointed with being taken out like this,” calling it a “dangerous move Lewis made on track.” He also wrote that “watching the celebrations while still in hospital is disrespectful and unsportsmanlike behavior but we move on.”
Also on Sunday night, hetweeted, “Cleared from the hospital after all the checks were ok. Thank you to everyone for all the nice messages and best wishes.”
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Speaking with PEOPLE in November, Hamilton said he would continue using his position as a star athlete to encourage, among other things, more diversity in his own sport.
source: people.com
