‘They've always supported me no matter what’ - F1 ACADEMY drivers pay tribute on Global Day of Parents

Long before the F1 ACADEMY race weekends and the podium celebrations, there were the early mornings, hard days and countless sacrifices made to help each driver chase their dreams.

It might all come down to the individual on track, but no one gets there alone. Every racer’s journey is made possible by the support system behind them — and often, that begins at home.

This Global Day of Parents, F1 ACADEMY drivers Kaylee Countryman, Alba Larsen, Ella Lloyd, Alisha Palmowski and Payton Westcott reflect on their parents’ dedication, encouragement and share their gratitude for those who have stayed by their side from day one.

KAYLEE COUNTRYMAN

“They've supported me so much. Obviously, they've helped me financially and just always been there for me. I think my stepdad has only missed two races in my entire career and that was because he was sick or actually could not be there. My mum is pretty much the same. They’ve always been pillars throughout the whole thing.

“It's really hard to think about what my life would have been without racing, but maybe they would have not been working as much anymore (…) I don't think the word thank you is enough in this instance. I don't think I can ever thank them enough.

“The only way to actually thank them is to succeed in the sense of doing what I want to do, being happy with how my racing career goes and succeeding. Then they'll be happy, they've always mentioned that if I'm happy, they're happy.”

ALBA LARSEN

“My parents have been my biggest supporters from the start. They were the ones getting me into the sport. They were the ones saying yes to buying me a used go-kart that my sister and I could drive in. They've always supported me no matter what I've done (…) I’m really, really grateful for the support, even though I don’t always sound that grateful!”

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“Being racing parents is so hard because they have to be in charge of all the logistics, help with getting sponsorships and help with managing everything so I don’t have to worry too much about it.

“It’s so special (to celebrate with them) because I sacrificed a lot like my friends and not being able to be home, but so do my parents. My mum travels with me everywhere and also my dad comes to all the races, so they don’t see their friends that often and have to leave home all the time as well. My sister is also giving up a lot because she’s having to live with me chasing my dreams and her being a bit more in the background sometimes during those race weekends.”

ELLA LLOYD

“They've always been there at every race, so it's obviously nice to have the support and the company on the travels. My mum plaits my hair most weekends, so it's nice to have a hairdresser with me as well, makes life easy! They are there for me for whatever I need, so it’s lovely.

“It doesn't mean just a lot to me, it means a lot to my parents and family as well. It's amazing to be able to celebrate and achieve those moments with them as well.”

ALISHA PALMOWSKI

“There aren't the words to describe how much they've supported me! I feel like they've sort of put their lives on pause in order for me to live my career and live my life. My whole life revolves around motorsport, but my parents are the exact same — they’re living this journey alongside me, the same as I am.

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“Motorsport is full of huge highs and huge lows and there’s often more lows than there are highs. They live those lows with me, we all get sad for a week after a race and it’s hard to keep the motivation and commitment through all those lows.

“Then when you have that success, it’s reminder to us all why we’re doing it. It makes all those sacrifices and all those commitments worthwhile. It’s the best feeling! When I’m winning races, it’s nice to be able to pay them back for everything that they’ve given me.

“I know it’s rare in motorsport that you have both parents who are fully behind the level of commitments that’s needed and I’m just so fortunate that both my parents are fully behind me. I say my mum is the biggest motorsport fan now in the family. She knows more than I do, she knows all the drivers in all the series. She's constantly looking at live timing of all these different series around the world, so I've actually converted my mum into a massive motorsport fan along the journey.”

PAYTON WESTCOTT

“My parents have supported my racing journey through and through. They are my biggest fans, I am so happy to call them my parents. My dad initially was the person who got me into racing. He has just been so supportive and I'm eternally grateful to him for putting me in racing.

“For their child to move across the world at 15 and go live in Italy by themselves is a big deal. The fact that they supported me through that, they were willing to just be there for me and let me do this to chase my dream means the world to me. It is really hard, I won't go home now until August.

“It's so amazing to celebrate those moments with them. It means so much for the sacrifices they've made and I've made together to then achieve these amazing results and for the hard work to pay off. I love you so much and I am so grateful for everything that you've supported me through and everything you do for me!”