Lewis Hamilton has vowed to carry on racing in Formula One until at least 2031 to complete a long-desired ambition to compete in Africa.
He is 41 now and will be 46 then, if the earliest date for the first grand prix planned for Rwanda is delivered upon – though it may be a year later depending on how the development of a proposed circuit being built in Bugesera, 25 miles south of the capital Kigali, progresses.
The exact year the much-vaunted race will start is yet to be decided, set to be 2031, yet conceivably a year later.
The deal with Africa was announced last week and answered Hamilton’s desire for a new race to be staged on the continent from which his paternal family descend, after the last event there was took place in Kyalami, South Africa, in 1993.
Ahead of the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, this weekend, Hamilton said: ‘I’m now forced to stay a bit longer because we have a race in Africa and that has been my dream to race in Africa. So, I’m going to have to keep fighting to stay fit. If I can keep punching out results over the next years, we will keep it going.’
Rwanda is a controversial presence in British sport over its human rights’ record and alleged ‘sportswashing’ with the ‘Visit Rwanda’ brand drawing criticism as a sponsor of Arsenal for eight years, before ending in June. ‘Visit Rwanda’ are now Aston Villa’s main shirt sponsor.
Lewis Hamilton is determined to race in Africa before he retires, which could see him race at 46
Amnesty International UK’s head of campaigns Felix Jakes said recently: ‘Rwanda is buying into the world’s biggest sports to polish its image and deflect from its appalling human rights’ record.
‘Formula One says sport can be “a positive force for good”. That rings hollow if F1 shrugs off who it is partnering with. Formula One must not be a bystander. It should use its influence with the Rwandan authorities to push for change, rather than lend its brand to a PR exercise.’
The United Nations and Western governments accuse Rwanda of backing the armed rebel group M23 with weapons and troops to fight a proxy war inside the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Rwanda deny supporting the insurgency.
Millions of civilians in eastern DRC have been displaced or killed as the conflict spirals into a humanitarian crisis.
