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via Imago

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The world of an IndyCar driver came crashing down at Pocono in 2018. He suffered a spinal cord injury in a crash, which put his Indy dreams on the back burner. While he has been racing in the IMSA Challenge series, he wants more. Perhaps something like what Lewis Hamilton‘s brother achieved in British Touring Car Championship.

The IndyCar racer who suffered this terrible accident is Robert Wickens. Last year, Wickens, with his teammate, Mark Wilkins, won on home turf in the Touring Car Class of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. This was the first victory the wheelchair-bound driver scored after his crash. And now the motivated man is looking at Indianapolis 500. And he may soon follow the path the junior Hamilton brother took.

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A few weeks ago, Lewis’ brother, Nicholas Hamilton, drove a modified car that he hadn’t even properly tested around Donington Park, where his brother also used to race in the junior formula series. The former ended up bringing home an impressive P6 in BTCC. This was his career-best finish. He achieved this feat despite suffering from cerebral palsy since childhood. And perhaps now we may see another following suit.

Wickens told Motorsport.com, “I think doing the Indy 500 would just be an amazing opportunity. If I can get on the grid in 2024 for the Indy 500, it will be 108th running of the race, and there’s never been someone [racing] with a disability.”

“I never thought that would be my legacy. But if that’s what it is, I think it’d be a pretty cool thing to do. And it’d be great for spinal cord awareness. I think it’d be great for any person struggling with something, to show that you can achieve anything in life if you have a great support system, and a lot of hard work, and a positive attitude.”

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As Nicholas has overcome so many obstacles, the British Vogue picked him to bring his story forward.

Lewis Hamilton’s brother shared his unconventional journey in the world of motorsport

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A video feature curated by the 107-year-old magazine Vogue featured many inspirational people from different fields giving their stories a platform. The said video on Instagram began with Hamilton’s brother describing himself as a mixed-race male. He then went on to tell his age and explain what he was wearing. But soon he dived deep into the real deal.

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The man is an inspiration as he fought against all odds. He said, “Being born two months premature, diagnosed with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy was definitely something that wasn’t in the script for me. I always wanted to race. I never thought I would be able to because of my condition. It wasn’t until I was 18 years of age. I got to a point where I could walk. I drove my first race car.–I made it my goal to ignore anyone that said that I couldn’t do anything. I tried to prove them wrong.—Last year I had an epiphany. I am not here for me anymore. I am here to serve others.”

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These steps are the first of many when we look at the arena of motor sporting as moving forward toward inclusion.