Sir Lewis Hamilton shows off new F1 race helmets designed by children
Once upon a time one-off helmet liveries were banned from F1
Sir Lewis Hamilton’s distinctive, bright yellow helmet design is inspired by that of his childhood hero, Ayrton Senna, and the seven-times world champion has had variations on the theme since his early days on track, racing karts.
However, there’s always further room for a little creativity in these things, and now three young artists have won the chance to see their own designs on the British F1 sensation’s helmet.
Following a nationwide competition aimed at UK-based students aged between 11 and 18 years old, the successful trio have been announced today as Liam, in the 11-13 category; Humayra in 14-16; and Alex in the 17-18 age group.
Designed to inspire
The competition was organised in conjunction with Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team partner and part-owner, Ineos, the chemical giant and carmaker. Its Ineos Go Humans academy is an online resource for young people which uses short videos to give “actionable advice and support from experts, athletes and creatives, designed to help you make small, incremental changes, to help you conquer anything to be your best self.”
The winning designs take that spirit into account. Alex’s uses a bright teal base with swirling flames and organic designs in red, yellow and black, with the phrase “Be Your Highest Self” picked out in bold black letters at the rear of the helmet.
Humayra’s effort features a menacing black base brightened up by geometric patterns in inclusive rainbow hues, with Hamilton’s distinctive racing number 44 prominent on the top. Characters in Mandarin script translate as: “I’m willing to take any amount of pain to win.”
There’s also a world map picked out in gold, presumably as a reference to Hamilton being a truly global sports superstar.
Finally, Liam’s design mixes patterns of red, blue, yellow and green on a plain white background, with the movement and pattern of the colours defined by Liam rolling his wheelchair back and forth on a canvas, spreading and moving the paint with his tyres.
The winners will all get their finished helmets pictured with Sir Lewis at one of the remaining F1 races in 2024, as well as a tour of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team HQ in Brackley. A bag of Mercedes team merchandise will be thrown into the bargain.
Huge response to the competition
“We were overwhelmed by the response and the high level of creativity from talented young people across the country,” said Rory Tait, Ineos Hygienics’ chief operating officer.
“Ineos’ Go Humans Academy is committed to supporting young people to perform at their best, and the response to this Year One celebration of the Academy has been astounding. We’re seeing more young people affected by confidence issues during their formative teen years and we’re passionate around expanding the Academy into more schools in 2024.
“The Ineos Go Humans Academy offers free-to-view video lessons featuring some of the world’s best athletes, experts and creatives. The program provides incredible role models teaching comprehensive life skills from relevant role models— filling in the gaps that traditional education doesn’t cover, but essential for well-rounded mental and physical development.”
One-off F1 helmets becoming commonplace
Hamilton’s special helmets aren’t the only ones in F1. Since a (somewhat pointless) official restriction on one-off or special helmet colour schemes was lifted in 2021, many drivers have repainted their helmets for specific events.
In 2021, McLaren teammates Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz Jnr both created their own one-off designs which were auctioned off for mental health charity Mind, raising £60,000. Other drivers have worn special helmets in tribute to great racers of the past, such as Charles Leclerc saluting the late great Niki Lauda, and Kimi Raikkonen once racing creating a helmet which was a perfect replica of that worn by 1976 champion, James Hunt.
Earlier this year, for the Australian Grand Prix, Aussie racer Daniel Ricciardo linked up with Melbourne-based artist Rosie Pettenon to create a design around the theme of “Australian Optimism” — rather ironic, considering how the rest of Ricciardo’s foreshortened season went…
Hamilton himself has previous form in this area, wearing a one-off helmet at the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix designed by local artist Hajime Sorayama. With its metallic gold colour scheme and LED backlighting for the visor, it looked as if Daft Punk had appeared on the grid.
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