Brazil’s congress officially named Lewis Hamilton an honorary citizen on Thursday, reports Sky SportsThe bill received enough votes in parliament to award the honor to the seven-time world champion.
The proposal was put forward by Congressman Andre Figueiredo after Lewis Hamilton won the 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix and then went around with the Brazilian flag in his hand. Last April, Hamilton said he would be honored to be an honorary citizen when he visited Sao Paulo.
A special event has been held where Hamilton will be formally honored as an honorary citizen. It is not known when that will happen.
Deep ties to Brazil
According to congressman Jhonatan de Jesus, traveling around with the Brazilian flag is not the only reason why the Briton has been awarded the great honour. According to De Jesus, Hamilton has a “deep and emotional connection” to his country. They also want to address issues to which Hamilton is committed, including human rights and diversity in sport.
There has also been criticism of the world champion’s honorary citizenship. New Party’s Tiago Mitraud acknowledged Hamilton’s performance in Formula 1, but the proposal made clear, he said, that “structural problems in Brazil are not seen as a priority”.
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