You’ve probably heard of the formula one legend Lewis Hamilton. But did you know he has a younger brother? One who can race!
In this article, I’ll introduce you to the driver, the speaker, and the indomitable man, that is, Nicolas Hamilton.
Early years…
For a child who was told he’d never walk, Nicolas has walked, jumped, and torn the roof off many stereotypes and limitations. Nicolas was born to Linda and Anthony Hamilton. He’s the half-brother to popular Formula one driver Lewis Hamilton.
Born with cerebral palsy – a medical condition that limits movement and coordination, – Nicolas didn’t have a good prognosis (movement-wise). He was confined to a wheelchair for most of his childhood. But he had big dreams! Dreams of walking unaided, and eventually driving really fast cars.
His dream of walking unaided came to pass after years of difficult physical therapy and training. At the age of 17, he gained the ability to walk unaided.
Nicolas, being an ambitious person, wasn’t prepared to stop there. He proceeded to get his driver’s license. Achieving all of this was obviously not enough for him, as he then went on to make his racing debut in the Renault Clio Cup United Kingdom in 2011 as a driver for Total Control Racing.
The Speaker
Nicolas didn’t just experience difficulties in growing up as a disabled person, he also learned a lot from them. He gives frank talks about the challenges he has faced throughout his life, and the mindset and techniques he used to overcome them.
He has themes that he regularly speaks about, including;
- Breaking down barriers,
- Goal setting,
- Overcoming adversity – learning from continual failure,
- Creating relationships,
- Mental health & mindset
For the most part, Nicolas speaks to inspire people and let them know that failure is a crucial part of everyone’s character-building process. He does this by sharing how he has welcomed failure, and how he has used his experiences to review and grow his career as a professional racing driver.
The Indomitable Man
Now you know the speaker and you know how he was shaped by his challenges. It is his victory over challenges that has created an indomitable man out of him.
Since overcoming his limitations, Nicolas has become the first disabled driver to compete in the British Touring Car Championship ( the peak of British motorsport) and has competed in a host of other renowned championships.
Some of his notable accomplishments are:
- becoming a full-time drive with Motorbase Performance,
- becoming the fourth Team HARD driver in a Volkswagen CC, and
- scoring his first-ever BTCC point after finishing the final race at Brands Hatch, in round 2 of the championship race, in 15th place
Final Thoughts
Nicolas, like other resilient people, has proven that you are more than your circumstances. You are the driving factor or the limiting factor to achieving your dreams.
Nicolas’ story inspires us at Equally AI to keep innovating so that we can keep enabling people with disabilities to achieve their dreams.
