Rarely do the worlds of formula one and the Olympics collide. But casual viewers of the prestigious equestrian dressage event could hardly believe their ears when a commentator said a German competitor was riding in London "her lovely stallion (called) Damon Hill".
And while a little piece of F1 trotted and pranced for gold, a little piece of the 2008 Beijing games can now be found in the McLaren garage. Olympic silver medallist Tom Stallard is Jenson Button's performance engineer. Four years ago, he was among the world's elite 'men's eight' rowers. "I'd always wanted to be in formula one," he said. "I did a motor sports-focused course at university and did some work experience in the sport. I basically joined the team straight after the 2008 Olympics."
And just so the story goes full circle, the most famous rower ever to grace a formula one paddock was Graham Hill -- former world champion Damon Hill's father. Before he got serious about racing, two-time title winner Hill competed for the prestigious London Rowing Club, adopting its distinctive navy and white colours for his F1 helmet. "The self discipline required for rowing and the 'never say die' attitude obviously helped me through the difficult years that lay ahead," 1962 and 1968 world champion Hill wrote in his 1969 autobiography, Life At The Limit. Son Damon Hill raced the same London rowing colours to the 1996 title. (GMM)
A horse called Damon Hill, a medallist at McLaren
- Published on 10 Aug 2012 13:39
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- By: Rob Veenstra
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Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
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Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
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Spain
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Australia
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Driver profile
- Team McLaren
- Points 37
- Podiums 0
- Grand Prix 41
- Country GB
- Date of b. Jan 19 1980 (46)
- Place of b. Frome, Somerset, GB
- Weight 72 kg
- Length 1.82 m
- 67,124 comments on McLaren
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- Team name McLaren
- Base Woking, United Kingdom
- Jenson Button 1
- Lewis Hamilton 1
- Fernando Alonso 1
- Niki Lauda 1
- Stoffel Vandoorne 2
- Lewis Hamilton 2
- Lewis Hamilton 2
- Gerhard Berger 2
- Daniel Ricciardo 3
- Jenson Button 3
- Lewis Hamilton 3
- Kimi Räikkönen 3
- Mika Häkkinen 3
- Lando Norris 4
- Lewis Hamilton 4
- Jenson Button 4
- Kimi Räikkönen 4
- Jenson Button 5
- Sergio Perez 6
- Kimi Räikkönen 6
- Kimi Räikkönen 6
- Niki Lauda 8
- Alain Prost 8
- Kimi Räikkönen 9
- Fernando Alonso 14
- Kevin Magnussen 20
- Jenson Button 22
- Lewis Hamilton 22
- Gerhard Berger 28
- Stoffel Vandoorne 47
- Carlos Sainz jr 55
- Oscar Piastri 81
- 306,828 comments on McLaren
- 163 members have this team as their favourite
- Tweets about McLaren
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