Marcus Rashford praised by F1 champ Lewis Hamilton

Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton has praised the campaigning efforts of Manchester United and England forward Marcus Rashford in a piece for Time Magazine.

The footballer, with 52 goals for club and 11 for country, has spearheaded a campaign to extend provisions to feed school children during the pandemic. Rashford has been appointed a Member of the British Empire for his work in establishing the Child Food Poverty Task Force and has received widespread recognition for his activism, including a special award at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards. Lewis Hamilton, himself recently knighted, was the winner of the main BBC award that night.

.@LewisHamilton: "In 2020, @MarcusRashford took his many talents beyond the football field—where he is a star player for Manchester United and England’s national team—to respond to a national crisis: child hunger" #TIME100Next https://t.co/R94j6NEXW1 pic.twitter.com/wkkFAwN5CU

— TIME (@TIME) February 17, 2021

"In a year that showed us the power to work together towards a common goal, he was a galvanizing force behind uniting people across the UK in an effort to ensure that no child goes hungry," the Mercedes driver said of Rashford.

The two had a brief exchange on Twitter:

Keep doing your thing 🙌🏾♥️

— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) February 17, 2021

Recognition for Rashford and Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton has also been recognized by Time Magazine in recent weeks, making its list of the world's 100 most influential people. The racer has been a passionate advocate of increased diversity in the motorsport industry, and of the vegan lifestyle, and has also been outspoken in condemnation of human rights abuses.

Both Hamilton and Rashford were named on the 2021 Powerlist of the most influential British people of African or Caribbean heritage.

Both are regularly in the British news not only for their sporting achievements but for their contribution to their respective causes.

Hamilton is increasingly considered the greatest of all time (GOAT) in Formula 1 with record victories, pole positions and sharing the record for world titles with the legendary Michael Schumacher. His Mercedes team have dominated the turbo-hybrid era of F1 in a manner that would make even the great Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson jealous.