Lewis Hamilton is one of the most recognizable athletes in the world. However, little is known about the origin of arguably the most successful F1 driver’s name. Hamilton’s name draws inspiration from another renowned athlete, Carl Lewis. Lewis’ father, Anthony Hamilton, was a big fan of the iconic Olympian and wanted to name his first son ‘Carl’ after him. That was until baby Lewis’ mother, Carmen Larbalestier, intervened and reversed it to Lewis Carl Hamilton.
Carmen wanted her newborn’s Christian names to be reversed. Hence, the world got Lewis Carl Hamilton and not Carl Lewis Hamilton. Call it the recall value or whatever, but Lewis Carl Hamilton just rolls better off the tongue. So, kudos to Ms. Larbalestier, because calling the seven-time world champion Carl Hamilton would just not be the same.
In the biography, Lewis Hamilton: Triple World Champion, Frank Worrall writes, “
“It was Anthony’s idea to name their precious son after US Olympic gold medal winning athlete Carl Lewis. Yet Carmen would also have a say, insisting that her newborn son’s Christian names should be turned around so that he was called Lewis Carl. It was the last time the word reverse would be used when talking about Lewis Carl Hamilton – from now on, it was always fast forward.”
However, that is not the end of the story behind Hamilton’s name. His full name is Lewis Carl Davidson Larbalestier Hamilton. While he added ‘Larbalestier’ (his mother’s last name) in 2022, ‘Davidson’ is Lewis’ grandfather’s first name.
The Mercedes star owes a lot of his success to his grandfather Davidson. Had it not been for a life-changing decision from him, the fortunes of the Hamilton lineage would have been very different.
How granddad Davidson’s crucial step decided Lewis Hamilton’s fate
Davidson lived in the Caribbean island nation of Grenada, where life was not particularly easy. He was only pondering over moving out of the country when a hurricane rocked the nation in 1955. 25-year-old Davidson decided to move to England, where he began working with the London Underground.
During his stay in England, Davidson had a son named Anthony. In his adult years, Anthony moved to Stevenage before his father decided to move back to his motherland, Grenada. Anthony decided to stay put and soon had a son named Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton.
It was thanks to this decision that Lewis got the opportunity to work towards his dream to excel in F1. Its unlikely that he would have achieved similar heights had his family moved back to Grenada.
