Osmunde Dolischka

Osmunde Dolischka rose through the European single-seater ranks during the 1990s, after winning a regional karting title in 1994. She was one of a small group of women who came within touching distance of a Formula One career in the 1990s.

She was a latecomer to motor racing. Prior to 1994, she had competed in alpine skiing and was Austrian champion in the giant slalom. Even then, she showed signs of versatility and competed in water-skiing as well as the more traditional alpine form.

In 1995, she raced in the German Formula Ford championship, winning the last round, at Salzburg and finishing seventh overall. She was third in her state championship.

Formula Ford was followed by Formula Renault in 1996. She was second in her first race, at Zolder, and picked up another win part-way through the season.

Her progress faltered in 1997 when she moved again into Formula Opel. Her single season in the category was hit by a series of car problems and she was unable to finish higher than twelfth place.

In 1998, Osmunde got her career back on track. She raced in Formula 3 in central Europe, driving for the Fritz Kopp team. Her first races were at the A1-Ring and she was fifth and ninth. Two non-finishes at the Sachsenring came next, but then she managed a fourth at Most. Later in the season, she picked up another two fourth places at Most, having bounced back from another DNF. A second visit to the A1-Ring and a trip to Brno gave her two second places, the best of her season. She was third in the second race at Brno. Her last race of the season was at Hockenheim, where she was fifth. She was third in the Formula 3 Austria Cup, in her first F3 season.

Her form was impressive enough to attract the attention of Peter Sauber, who wanted to run her in Formula 3000. However, her biggest sponsor, Fujitsu-Siemens, pulled out in favour of her rival, Claudia Steffek, making this impossible. Osmunde and Claudia had fought it out on the track all year in F3, with Osmunde the more accomplished driver. Claudia was sixth in the championship and had a best finish of fourth. Fujitsu-Siemens opted for Claudia anyway, possibly due to her being younger and driving an older car. Her career stalled as suddenly as Osmunde’s did, a couple of years later.

1998 was her only season in Formula 3. She continued to compete in 1999, in the ADAC VW New Beetle Cup. Saloon cars were a new experience for her. She was eleventh in the championship.

That year, she also raced a Porsche 993 GT3 in endurance races. The results are not forthcoming. This marked the end of her circuit racing career. She had always had some money for her racing from family business interests, but without a sponsor, she was unable to continue at the level of which she was capable.

She attempted a comeback as a rally driver, in 2007, but crashed her VW Golf on her first event, and thought better of it. The accident happened on the first stage of the Ostarrichi Rally. It was one of a series of crashes on the stage and part of the rally was cancelled.

Osmunde is still involved in motorsport, running a kart hire firm and supporting her daughter’s karting career. Jorden was born in 2004 and has competed at a high level since the age of nine. She made her debut in cars in 2021.

(Image from vn.at)

Claudia Steffek

Claudia Steffek is an Austrian former Formula 3 driver who had a high profile during her short career in the late 1990s. She was a rival to her fellow Austrian, Osmunde Dolischka, and was touted as a Formula One hopeful.

After a short but successful karting career from the ages of thirteen to sixteen, she started racing Formula Ford at 17, in 1996. Her first season brought her first win, in the last race of the year, at Brno.

A second season in Formula Ford followed. She was second in the German international championship. No race results are forthcoming for this series. With some good performances in Formula Ford under her belt, Claudia was keen to progress up the ladder. The same year, she stepped up to Formula 3, in the Zone A European series, and was apparently third in the championship. Unfortunately, no results for that championship are forthcoming either.  She was driving for the Italian ADM team, who would continue to support her for the next two seasons.

Formula 3 was her main focus in 1998, and here, she starts to turn up on the bigger starting grids that are still available to consult. Claudia appears in the Austrian and Central European championships, driving an Alfa Romeo-engined Dallara F391, under the banner of her own Claudia Steffek Racing Team. She had a best finish of fourth in the Austrian championship, at Brno, in September. In addition to this, she was fifth on several occasions. She was running in the Austria Cup class for older cars, but finished above drivers in much more recent machinery more than once. Her final position was sixth in Austrian F3, and she was also fifth in the Austrian Racing Championship.

1999 was her best season yet. She had secured sponsorship from Fujitsu Siemens, from under the nose of her female opponent, Osmunde Dolischka. This caused some rancour, but did not affect Claudia’s on-track performances too much. This year, she had access to a newer car, a 1994 Dallara, and her year started promisingly with a fifth place at Spielberg. She was then fourth at Most, eighth twice at Brno, and in August, secured her first Formula 3 podium, a third at Most. This then improved to a second place, at Rijeka in Croatia. She would also score a third and fifth at this track. The final meeting, at Brno, gave her another third, and a fifth. Her consistency and speed meant that she was an impressive third in the Austrian F3 championship.

For the 2000 season, she set her sights on Italian Formula 3000. She was named as a driver for the Malta Racing* team in March, and stated that her aim was to be racing in Formula One by 2002. The team, however, pulled out before the season started, and she does not appear to have raced since. This does suggest that she lost more than sponsorship, and that her own money may have been taken. It is a shame that she did not get the chance to make a comeback, as she was still only twenty when her career finished.

*no connection is implied with other motorsport organisations with similar names.

(Image from www.motorline.cc)