Alex Albon raises $93,000 for Thai orphanage by auctioning 2022 Singapore GP Helmet

Williams F1 driver Alex Albon raised funding for the building of the Wat Sakraeo Orphanage’s new sports hall.

The 2022 Singapore GP wasn’t a memorable race for Alex Albon. He returned to racing after missing the Italian GP after suffering from appendicitis.

But the Thai driver crashed into the barriers on lap 7 after losing control of his FW44. Yet Albon managed to get a positive ending to the race.

Ahead of the 2022 Singapore GP, Alex sported a new colourful helmet designed by over 200 children of the Wat Sakraeo Orphanage. It features a huge smile on the front and artwork like a basketball, a car, and football and karaoke from the children’s story books.

On top, it features a group of children holding hands. And an elephant which is the national animal of Thailand and an important animal in Buddhist mythology.

 

The Thai driver decided to auction off his race-worn helmet for his philanthropic mission. Albon had promised to raise funds for the construction of the orphanage’s new sports hall.

The Auction was conducted by F1 Authentics. It began on the 1st of October and ended on the 11th of October and raised £84,075 ($93080) successfully.

Also Read: Why the 26-year-old Williams F1 driver still has the Red Bull logo on his helmet?

Orphanage to rename sports hall after Alex Albon

The Wat Sakraeo Orphanage is located 105 Km away from the capital city of Bangkok. Alex visited the orphanage previously in April where he enjoyed lunch and played sports with the children.

The orphanage houses over 2000 children and they required funding for their sports hall. And this is where Alex stepped in.

He said in a video posted by him, “They are raising money for their sports hall and it was up to them to design a helmet for me. There were about 200 kids that got involved and they all had a go.”

The orphanage decided that they would be renaming the newly constructed hall as the ‘Alex Albon Sports hall’ in honour of the F1 driver’s efforts. But according to Albon, this was just an “opportunity to do the right thing.”

Alex said he is pretty shy and is not very public about his personal life. But the driver stated that he felt privileged and wanted to take this opportunity to help the children.

The helmet’s bid price was limited to just £25. But in the last 48 hours alone it went up by over £60,000. This was much higher than the mere £20,000 the orphanage expected. Surely, the gesture by the Williams driver shall help the kids immensely.

Also Read: When Alex Albon nearly gave up on his F1 dream after injuring himself during a bike ride with George Russell

Alex Albon dyed his hair red the last time he visited the orphanage

The charity with whom Alex Albon pledged the funds is headed by Volker Capito, bother of Williams F1 team Principal Jost Capito. Volker has been doing charitable work with the Wat Sakraeo Orphanage since 2004.

The story goes that Volker once brought ice cream for each of the 2500 kids in the orphanage. Hence naming the charity ‘Iceman Charity’. They have since then raised $2 Million.

Alex visited the orphanage in April ahead of the 2022 Australian GP. And the Thai driver enjoyed a fun interaction with the kids, including playing a game of football.

Alex even dyed his hair red. He explained, “These kids were Liverpool fans. Red is also a lucky colour in most of Asia, so the kids wanted to dye my hair. And of course, I just had to say yes.”

He claimed to have met officials from the Thai Tourism Board with his hair “glowing red”! Alex promised he would be back for the kids and he was true to his word.

Also Read: “She’s a hairdresser”– Alex Albon could visit Charles Leclerc’s mum to get his hair fixed