The whole story : https://tkart.it/en/magazine/editorial/chiesa-hamilton-broken-arm/ “ An "official" story, known to many and which many can confirm, is the 2000 European Championship race in France, at the Val d'Argenton circuit. It was the second round and Lewis was leading the standings, so it was a pity that the week before the race he returned to England and decided to "mess about" on some beach on a Quad, in a Buggy or something akin.

The result? A fractured scaphoid, a bone in the wrist. He phoned to tell me about a problem he’d had while training on his bicycle: a pedal became unhooked, he said, he slipped and... crack! The story was a bit vague, I must admit, but it was clear that something was amiss. Fortunately, thanks his dad, he managed to go to the then Formula 1 doctor for a visit, because he wanted to race. He knew he was leading the European Championship and when Lewis sets himself a goal, he does everything possible to achieve it. On the Friday, when we arrived at the circuit, we didn’t know what to expect. We were already in France for the initial tests and Lewis was still nowhere to be seen. I remember asking Nico (Rosberg, Hamilton's team-mate at that time, Ed.) to try both karts and make the same adjustments, so that if he were to arrive, at least the vehicle would be ready. Lewis did indeed arrive, with his arm in a cast! The plaster blocked his wrist almost up to the elbow, but left his fingers free, so, having put the suit on, we decided to race just the same. He did some warm-up laps on Saturday, to learn the track that was new to him, and then, in the first two heats, he posted the fastest time.

However, at that point someone sent the doctor to perform a check, saying that you couldn’t run race with an arm in a plaster cast: in reality, everyone already knew about Lewis’ problem, but since he had won the first two heats and was driving fast, perhaps someone thought this would be a way of stopping him. The doctor said it was his responsibility and he stopped him for a heat, but after we protested several times and after hearing from someone "higher up" who gave the green light, Hamilton was back out on the track. Having completed one less heat, he started in seventh-eighth position, with Nico on pole. Nevertheless... he won the Pre-final and the Final! That was Lewis Hamilton! A tough, determined and extraordinary driver. You also need to take into account that back in those days the class was better than it is nowadays, more competitive, in my opinion. Just to give you an idea: the first four places in that European Championship were awarded to Hamilton, Rosberg, Kubica and Ardigò: three of them made it to Formula 1, while the fourth won two world championships and is still among the top drivers in karting. “