Lewis Hamilton on the ball for Invictus as Formula One world champion celebrates his new ambassador role at Tedworth House

Lewis Hamilton has been appointed the Invictus Games’ first ambassador
Hamilton celebrated his new role with a spot of wheelchair basketball
Formula One champion Hamilton took on several injured ex-servicemen
Hamilton was all smiles as he took part in events and posed for pictures

Published:
22:30 GMT, 26 June 2015

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Updated:
01:05 GMT, 27 June 2015

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Lewis Hamilton’s determination not to let anyone pass was put to the test when he played in a wheelchair basketball game with injured ex-servicemen.

The Formula One world champion visited Tedworth House to celebrate his appointment as the Invictus Games’ first ambassador.

Former Royal Navy marine engineer AJ Pingram said: ‘He seemed genuinely interested in how we’re using sport as part of our recovery process and he definitely gave us a run for our money during the wheelchair basketball match.’

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Lewis Hamilton is all smiles as he celebrates his appointment as the Invictus Games’ first ambassador

Formula 1 World Champion Hamilton has a go at wheelchair basketball at Tedworth House on Friday

Hamilton is given some instructions as he looks to take part in some frenetic wheelchair basketball

Hamilton poses with ex-servicemen as the Invictus Games Foundation announce him as ambassador

Happy Hamilton is joined for a picture with lots of injured ex-servicemen as he celebrates ambassador role

Hamilton appeared on the BBC’s Graham Norton Show on Friday night and admitted that he would rather see a driver from another team win the Formula One drivers’ championship than finish runner-up to his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg.

He has endured a frosty relationship with the German during their two years racing together at Mercedes.

Hamilton beat Rosberg to the championship last season in what he described as the ‘most intense’ battle of his career and admitted their once solid friendship reached ‘crisis point’.

And Hamilton, speaking during the recording of BBC’s Graham Norton Show, has now revealed that the rivalry is so deep that he wouldn’t like to see Rosberg win the title even though they are supposed to be team-mates.

Lewis Hamilton appeared on Friday night’s episode of The Graham Norton Show on BBC One

Hamilton was joined on the sofa by Rita Ora (left centre), Ewan McGregor (right centre) and Jack Whitehall

Hamilton admitted that even if he didn’t win the title he still wouldn’t want team-mate Rosberg to win

‘It’s a difficult one,’ Hamilton explains. ‘You are a team and the job is for both drivers to get points to win the championships.

‘But, individually, we both want to win so we want to beat each other. I’m supposed to say that if I don’t win, I want my team-mate to win, but it’s not really the case.’

The 30-year-old also revealed how he was given a lesson in etiquette by the Queen during a lunch.

‘I got invited to a lunch and was sitting next to the Queen. I was excited and started to talk to her but she said, pointing to my left, “No, you speak that way first and I’ll speak this way and then I’ll come back to you”.

‘She is a sweet woman and we talked about how she spends her weekends, houses and music. She is really cool.’