How a unique solution empowers F3 driver Mansell to race with diabetes

In the world of international motorsport – like any sporting arena – there are plenty of examples of competitors living with type-one diabetes.

IndyCar’s Charlie Kimball and NASCAR Xfinity Series racer Ryan Reed are just two examples of drivers who have raced and enjoyed success at a high level of motorsport as diabetics.

Formula 3 racer Christian Mansell isn’t defined by the condition he lives with, but it is also something he cannot ignore in the car either.

Last year, in his first season in the championship, Mansell was granted special dispensation from the FIA stewards to race with a mobile phone in his car on a round-by-round basis at the request of his team. This allowed his trainer to access real-time data about Mansell’s blood sugar levels and have the opportunity to intervene if any safety risk developed.

While the FIA’s medical delegate recognised that Mansell was “medically fit to compete notwithstanding his diabetes condition,” the governing body was eager for an “acceptable solution” to be found that could be applied permanently, rather than require event-by-event approval in the form of dispensation.

Speaking to media including RaceFans at Spa-Francorchamps, Mansell explained how his ART team currently use a revised version of his mobile phone solution from last season to provide the oversight necessary to allow him to race.

“It’s actually quite simple once we’ve actually gotten it down to routine,” Mansell said.

“I basically have a fibreglass case that my phone gets mounted to the cockpit with – which is pretty ridiculous – and obviously I can’t touch it, I can’t do anything to it. The FIA actually lock the phone, they set a password on it. So they’ve been really helpful in the whole process.”

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The phone is present in his car during every session that Mansell participates in. The 19-year-old says that aside from the general standard of fitness required for a single-seater driver, he must also work on ensuring his blood sugar levels remain in a healthy window over a race weekend.

“That’s hard,” he admits. “But it’s doable, because I do it every day – and it’s what I tell myself.

“I try and separate ‘racing’ diabetes and ‘normal’ diabetes as best I can because, at the end of the day, there is a difference. But there’s a lot of preparation behind the scenes and I think that’s what helps me most, as far as actually being able to do my job.

“It’s already such a feat in itself, that I’m already very proud of myself for even being able to sit here in front of you today and sort of discuss such a crazy thing that I live through every day. I’ve spoken to a few drivers in the paddock and they’ve come up to me and said ‘I don’t even know how you do it’. But it’s just through trial and error that we’ve managed to get it down to a tee.”

Mansell, who currently sits sixth in the F3 standings heading into the final round of the championship at Monza after four podium finishes, says it is important to him that he is a visible example to young people living with diabetes that the condition is not a barrier to their motorsport dreams.

“At the end of the day, it sounds very cliche, but it is true – if you do put your mind towards it, you genuinely can do anything,” he says.

“That’s why I’m such a big advocate for mental health, and that’s why I’m such a big advocate for sports people living with diabetes. Because at the end of the day, we can do it. And I think the more and more that I put myself on the world stage and show kids… I’ve gotten messages from parents saying that their kids would have never done anything sport related. I actually recently had a mother text me on my Instagram saying that their child is now doing karting. So it’s very, very sweet.”

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