Janice R. Andrews
Lewis Hamilton has said that he fully supports Rwanda’s plans to host a Formula 1 Grand Prix. Next month, talks between Rwanda and Formula 1 are planned. People are excited about the idea of an F1 race in Rwanda, which would bring the sport back to Africa for the first time in more than 30 years.
When was the last Formula 1 race in Africa? It was the South African Grand Prix in 1993, which took place at the Kyalami Circuit near Johannesburg. Recently, efforts to bring F1 back to South Africa failed. However, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali recently said that Rwanda has “serious” plans to host a Grand Prix, which has renewed interest in Africa as a place for the sport.
Hamilton, who traveled through several African countries over the summer break, including Morocco, Senegal, Benin, Mozambique, and Madagascar, talked about how important it is for F1 to be present in Africa. He said, “Now is the perfect time to hold a race in Africa.” We can’t keep ignoring Africa while adding races in other places. The rest of the world only takes from Africa. Africa doesn’t get anything.
Hamilton went into more detail about Africa’s possibilities. He said that a Grand Prix would not only show off the continent’s beauty, but it would also bring in more tourists and help the economy grow. “That place needs a lot of work.” A lot of people who haven’t been there yet don’t know how beautiful it is, and he said that the Grand Prix would really bring that out and bring in tourists.
Hamilton also talked about how ready African tracks are, especially the Kyalami Circuit, which he thinks could be added to the F1 program right away. “Why are we not on that continent?” he asked, emphasizing how important it was for F1 to put money into Africa. The reason given now is that “there may not be a track that’s ready, but there is at least one track (Kyalami) that is ready.”
For Hamilton, supporting Rwanda as a Grand Prix site comes from his own visits to the country and his talks with both Rwandan and South African officials. This is one of my favorite places I’ve been. A lot of work has been going on behind the scenes. There are people in Rwanda and South Africa that I’ve talked to. “They’re so excited to be a part of the Rwanda project, even though it will take longer,” Hamilton said.
Officials in Rwanda are also very excited about the idea. “It is time for Africa to be on the F1 calendar,” said Christian Gakwaya, President of the Automobile Club of Rwanda. We’re all set to host an F1 race.
Gakwaya pointed out that Rwanda’s desire to host a Formula 1 event fits with the country’s larger plan to use sports to improve the economy. “For motorsports in Rwanda, hosting F1 is an important part of a broader strategy that includes infrastructure development, capacity building [social and economic development], and schools, and the drive to host more international events and championships,” he said.
When the FIA awards event takes place in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, in December, the country will have a chance to show what it can do. Through this event, Rwanda will be able to show that it is ready to host Formula 1 in Africa. Members of the Rwanda Development Board also met with FIA officials at the Monaco Grand Prix earlier this year, which made Rwanda’s goals even stronger.
As talks go on, Thailand and South Korea also come up as possible future F1 race sites. Domenicali plans to look into Thailand’s bid during his trip to Bangkok after next month’s Singapore Grand Prix.
