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Lewis Hamilton has met with FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem and, according to the FIA, got “reminded” of “his obligation of sportsmanship” for not attending the Prize-Giving Gala.
As already confirmed today, on Thursday Lewis Hamilton met with FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem to discuss diversity and inclusion in motorsport, but according to the FIA’s report they also discussed Lewis’ absence from the FIA Prize-Giving Gala in December.
Following the controversial finish of the 2021 Formula 1 season, Lewis and Toto chose not to attend the ceremony, as they felt “disillusioned” by the way the final race of the season was decided.
According to the FIA’s rules, the three top finishing drivers from all of their championships are required to attend the Gala, so it has been speculated that Lewis might be facing some type of punishment.
Today Lewis announced that his fine “will be put towards youth from underprivileged backgrounds getting into motorsports engineering”.
However, in a statment also released today, the FIA announced Lewis will be making a €50,000 donation “to support a student from a disadvantaged background in achieving an educational qualification in motor sport”, but they didn’t state it was also a fine.
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“FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem met yesterday with seven-time FIA Formula 1 World Champion Sir Lewis Hamilton ahead of the opening round of the 2022 season to discuss the work being done by the FIA and key motor sport stakeholders to build greater diversity and inclusion in the motor sport industry,” the FIA’s statement said.
“Hamilton shared some of his experiences and findings from the report of the Hamilton Commission, authored by the Royal Academy of Engineering and published last year.
“One of the key factors identified upon which commitment to Diversity and Inclusion relies is the implementation of initiatives that are accessible to underrepresented groups.
“The FIA President noted the important foundational work done by the FIA in recent years with projects such as FIA Girls on Track, and commended the commitment shown by Hamilton in projects such as Mission 44 and Ignite.
“In the spirit of commitment to building a more diverse sport in the future, the FIA President gave his full support to Hamilton’s decision to make a donation of €50,000 that will be used to support a student from a disadvantaged background in achieving an educational qualification in motor sport.
“The FIA and Hamilton will work together with and independent panel and throughout this process. Both the FIA President and Hamilton look forward to further positive steps in this area in 2022 and beyond, with Diversity and Inclusion being made a key priority for the Federation.”
In the final part of the statement, the FIA said Lewis and Ben Sulayem discussed his absence from the Gala.
“During the meeting, the circumstances that led to Hamilton’s absence from the 2021 FIA Prize Giving Ceremony were also discussed,” the statement continued.
“Hamilton acknowledged the importance of celebrating the year’s achievements with the prize-winners from across motor sport and the FIA President reminded Hamilton of his obligation of sportsmanship, particularly in view of his status in motor sport.”
The last part of this statement seems somewhat strange, especially taking into account the reasons why Lewis missed the Gala, which have not yet been properly addressed by the FIA.
