Since the start of the 2020 Formula 1 season, some drivers have knelt before each race to send a message against racism, a gesture that was copied from other sports.
From now on, that’s over! Formula 1 will reduce the time it was given before the anthems ceremony and will focus on other aspects of the “We Race as One” campaign. Specific actions instead of gestures: that’s the new direction of the category.
However, before the races, a video against racism will continue to be broadcast and the hashtag “#WRAO” will remain on the circuits. On the other hand, each pilot will be totally free to continue demonstrating against discrimination on their own.
Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali told ‘ Sky ‘ the following: “We don’t have to do politics. I think now it’s about accompanying the signs with real actions. We have to focus on the diversity of our community. And that’s the first step.”
This pre-race ceremony is also abolished, according to Domenicali, because it has served its purpose for the last two years.
F1 wants actions instead of gestures from 2022
“I think the gesture was already important to those who believed in it. We have to respect everyone, of course, but now is the time to move on and take other steps.”
Formula 1 has drawn up its first aid program to try to give everyone the same opportunities and allow greater access for groups with less representation.
As part of its measures to improve diversity, F1 on Tuesday extended its commitment to its scholarship program for minority engineers. The project was launched with a $1 million donation from former Formula 1 CEO Chase Carey , and will now run for another four years, until the end of 2025.
So far, the program has successfully supported ten participants who have started internships at universities in the UK and Italy, with the aim of offering them job opportunities in the not too distant future.
