Hungarian Grand Prix 2024: Lewis Hamilton praises Ralf Schumacher for coming out as gay

Other F1 drivers also welcomed Schumacher’s move.

McLaren’s Lando Norris said: “It’s a good thing. From an inclusivity and diversity point of view, F1, McLaren, we have pushed for it a lot over the last three or four years especially, the whole world kind of moved in that direction.

“And whether it’s this or talking about mental health, you just want people to live their life and be happy and not feel like they are going to get judged, so I’m very happy for him.”

Aston Martin’s two-time champion Fernando Alonso said: “Total support from my side and I’m sure all the F1 community. It’s great that he feels good and we all feel good for him as well.”

A spokesperson for F1 told BBC Sport: “It is a very positive thing for the sport and for Ralf that he has announced this news.

“It shows that F1 has taken big steps forward in inclusivity and diversity and he feels able to be open about his sexuality.

“We want to keep pushing to ensure everyone feels accepted and welcomed for who they are but we should all be proud of the progress we are making. We want to show everyone that our incredible sport is open to you.”

Hamilton, however, said that F1 needed to make progress in all areas, and singled out disability access as another problem.

And he said that the sport had made a lot of progress since he and Sebastian Vettel protested about an anti-LGBTQ+ law in Hungary three years ago, and took similar stances in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, whose human rights records have been heavily criticised.

Hamilton said: “That’s all started from Seb and I standing on the grid here and fighting against what the government was doing here. And in Saudi and Qatar, I remember Ralf said it wasn’t a good idea to do those things.

“Perhaps today he may have shifted his mind. And even him taking that step sends such a positive message and liberates others to be able to do the same. We need more and more people to be free to do that.”