Female Rally Drivers after 1950: Japan

Rina Ito

Language difficulties make it hard to research rallying in Japan, but there are at least a few female drivers active on the domestic scene. This post will hopefully be expanded in future.

Eri Kurosawa (Kuroeri) - competed in the Japanese rally championship in 2019, driving a Honda Fit. Her best finish was 26th in the International Rally of Tsumagoi, second in class. She was also 30th in the Shinshiro Rally, from 44 finishers. At the end of the year, she was fifth in class JN6 of the Japanese championship. 2019 was her second season in a car, as she had done some rallies in a Toyota Aqua in 2018. In 2021, she did two more Japanese events in a Mazda Roadster, which she continued to rally in 2022. Her best result was 31st in the MCSC Highlands Rally. “Kuroeri” is a celebrity in Japan, who models and occasionally appears on screen.

Arisa Mizuhara - rallies a hybrid Nissan Note in her native Japan. 2019 appears to be her first season of major rallies, although she and co-driver Risa Mizuhara apparently competed together in 2018. Her best result so far has been a 32nd place in the International Rally of Tsumagoi in January, where she was fourth in class. It was her first event on snow. Later in the year, she seems to have driven a Subaru Impreza as well as the Note. In 2020, she started the year with a Toyota Vitz but then upgraded to a Yaris for three Japanese championship rallies. She won her class in the Tour de Kyushu, finishing 38th overall. 2021 was a busy year for her, with ten rallies in a Toyota Yaris. Her best result was probably 26th in the ARK Rally Kamuy.

Noriko Nakajima - rally driver who drives a Mitsubishi Lancer, usual an Evo IX, in Japanese events. She has been active since at least 2018. Her best open rally is the Kamikochi Rally, an asphalt event near Nagano. She finished ninth in it in 2018 and 2020. In addition, she was runner-up in the 2020 Women’s Rally in Ena, also on asphalt. She has top-twenty finishes in several other rallies in East Japan, although 2022 has not been the best year for her, with two retirements. In 2023, she rallied the Lancer again and had a best finish of third in the Ena Women's Rally. Her best finish in a mixed event was a twelfth place in the Kamikochi Rally. In 2024, she improved her Ena result to second, and from six other Japanese events, had a best finish of fourth in the Minamiboso Rally.

Kozue Oi - Japanese international driver. She began her WRC career in Kenya in 2000, in a Subaru Forester. Since then, she has driven in WRC events in Japan and New Zealand, as well as the Japanese and Asia Pacific championships. She also drives in Malaysian rallies. Her cars have included a Subaru Impreza, Mitsubishi Lancer and Ford Fiesta. In 2009, she drove a Mitsubishi Colt in the Japan Rally Series, which she won, driving for the MusicMasters team, after a string of good finishes. She drove in the Wales Rally GB for the first time in 2009. As well as rallying, she has won multiple titles in off-road trials in Japan.

Fumi Shimada – rallied a Mazda 2 Demio in Japan, in 2013 and 2014. She did reasonably well in her first season, scoring two top-twenty finishes, the best of these being an 18^th in the Osaka University Tango Peninsula Charity Rally. She was also 20^th in the MCSC Rally Highland Masters, fifth in class. In 2014, she did not do quite as well, and had a best finish of 29^th, in the Shinshiro Rally. In 2015, she rallied the Demio again, and managed to finish the MSCC Rally Highland Master in 25 place, second in class. For 2016, her schedule was very similar. She was 27th in the both the MSCC event, and the Shinshiro Rally, and 32nd in the Wakasa Rally. In 2017, she only entered one rally, the Shinshiro Rally, and did not finish. Her navigator is usually Yusuke Ishiguro.

(Image from http://cdn.mkimg.carview.co.jp)

Deborah Kibble

New Zealand's varied climate and terrain makes it an excellent place for rallying. Deborah married into a New Zealand rallying family and she too was infected by rally fever. A year later she was co-driving for her husband Jamie, and a year after that they switched seats after a couple of trial runs proved that Deborah was a capable driver too.

For a few years the pair gained experience on the club rally scene. In 1998, it was time for a step up and Deborah took to driving a Group A Nissan Pulsar GTI-R, as driven by Tommi Makinen in the WRC. She and Jamie were a promising 42nd on their first Rally New Zealand, and things were going well until a dramatic accident near the end of the season. The Nissan was a write-off and Deborah and Jamie were lucky to survive the multiple airborne roll. The car was replaced with a Group N Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI, and Deborah has campaigned in various incarnations of that vehicle ever since.

She returned to New Zealand's WRC round in 1999 with Catherine Dobbie and finished 33rd. By now she was competing in the NZ championships and scoring points. 2000 brought a Rally NZ retirement with Jamie back in the co-driver's seat, but the reunited pair finished the following year, in 45th. 2001 was probably Deborah's best year so far. She recorded a World Championship finish and also became New Zealand Group N Rally Champion outright, after an excellent string of results in her domestic championship.

Still in the ageing Evo VI, she defended her crown in 2002 but lost it. She also retired from Rally NZ but was a strong twelfth in the Rotorua Rally, a round of the Asia-Pacific Championship. She was fifth in Group N against an international field.

Deborah sat out most of 2003 while searching for more sponsorship. Although it was difficult, she managed to secure a deal for 2004 with Mitsubishi New Zealand.

In a brand-new Evo VIII named Tommi, after Tommi Makinen,, Deborah returned to the stages for the 2004 season. Back at the Rotorua, they were thirteenth, and twelfth at the Otago Rally in Dunedin. In between, Deborah and Jamie both entered the Race To The Sky hillclimb. Deborah came seventeenth overall, and third rally car, in this classic event.

One of her biggest tests of the year came at the third round of the NZ championships. The weather for the Southland Rally was atrocious, with mountain snow and rain causing havoc. In the freezing conditions, she took advantage of the troubles of others to record her first stage win. The leader was held up by stranded smaller cars and Deborah used her better road position to achieve a good time. She was fifteenth overall and fifth in Group N. It was still wet and cold for the Hawkes Bay rally, but there were fewer problems and she came thirteenth. One of their best finishes was at Nelson, where she was eleventh, and sixth in Group N, in good weather. That took her up to tenth overall in the championship. A small loss of ground in the Waikato event dropped her to eleventh overall in the championship but she kept their Group N position.

Deborah did not compete at all for much of 2005. Tommi was sold in March and, wanting to try something new, Deborah bought a Kawasaki ZX6R motorcycle with the proceeds. Later in the season she found herself missing the stages. The bike was sold and she came back to rallying, but as a navigator rather than a driver. She sat alongside Robert Murray.

In 2006, Deborah continued to navigate for Robert Murray. Their car was a fearsome 1986 Group B Mazda RX7, formerly driven by Neil Allport. The classic bug had truly bitten; she then acquired an ex-Ross Dunkerton EX Mitsubishi Lancer. The intention was to compete in some more classic rallies, both as a navigator and a driver. The Lancer has been in action on the historic stages (and some more modern ones) of New Zealand since 2007. Deborah’s co-drivers have included Nicola Burley, Robbie McKenzie and Heather Johnston. She now describes herself as competing for fun rather than titles.

In 2014, she drove in the Canterbury and Otago Rallies, finishing 21st and 27th respectively, in the Lancer. She was thirteenth in the 2015 Otago Rally, but did not finish the Rally of Canterbury. Heather Johnston was her co-driver.

This arrangement continued for 2016. Deborah was tenth in the Mainland New Zealand Series, in the EX Lancer. Her best overall result was 20th, in the Spring Rally. Using the same car, she did a few New Zealand rallies in 2017.

She had a new car in 2018: a Toyota Starlet. Her best finish was a class win and 31st overall in the Lawrence Rally. The EX Lancer was out again in 2019 and netted its owner three finishes from five rallies. The best of these was 24th and sixth in class on the Rankleburn Rally. Sadly, it did not finish its only 2020 outing, the Spring Rally, due to a broken differential. She did better in 2021, finishing two of her three rallies.

In 2022, she brought out the Lancer for the South Canterbury and Otago Rallies. She was 29th in the Otago event and did not finish the South Canterbury Rally. She entered the Otago event in 2023, but did not finish after an off-road excursion. Driving a different car, an Impreza, she finished the Otago Rally in 2024, in 26th place.

(Thanks to Deborah herself for her contribution.)
(Image source unknown)

Christine Driano

Christine (right) and Guylaine Juillot

Frenchwoman Christine had been rallying for three years when she got her big break in 1984. Citroen France had organised a challenge to find a new female works driver, and Christine was one of the winners, alongside Sylvie Seignobeaux, having impressed the judges with her abilities and finished second in the championship. In 1985, she took up her Citroen prize drive, and competed in a full French Championship programme.

After a couple of years of rallying the Citroen AX Sport, first in France, then in Spain also, Christine hit a good run of form and won the French Class A Championship in 1988. This was a feat she repeated in 1989 and 1990, and soon the bigger stage was beckoning. Her first World Championship rally was the Tour de Corse in 1990, co-driven by Marie-Christine Lallement. The AX failed to finish.

At the same time, the French championship had not been forgotten. In 1989, driving the Citroen, Christine was twelfth in the Rallye des Garrigues Languedoc-Roussillon. In 1990, she was seventh in the Rallye Antibes-Rallye d'Azur.

1991 saw her move away from Citroen. She drove an Alfa Romeo 75 Turbo on the Tour de Corse, supported by Alfa Romeo France, but did not finish.

1992 saw two WRC outings for Christine, co-driven by Cathy Francois this time and back in the Citroen. Driving for a private team, the two women were fourteenth in Corsica and won Class A5. Despite having works support for the Catalunya Rally, they were only second in class there, although still a good 16th overall. Driving an AX, the new pairing were sixth in the Rallye des Garrigues and twelfth in the Rallye d'Antibes.

A more ambitious Christine entered seven WRC rounds in 1993, as a works Citroen driver. She started well in the Monte Carlo Rally, coming thirteenth in the larger-engined AX GTI, third in Class A7. Thirteen was her lucky number that season as her second rally of the year, Portugal, gave her another thirteenth place. She was back in the AX Sport and came second in Class A5. Her home rally, Corsica, was a disappointment, as she and Guylaine Juillot retired, and the Acropolis ended in another non-finish. Things picked up in the tough Argentinian mountains with a 21st place, but she could not quite maintain the momentum for New Zealand and San Remo, where she and Marie-Christine were 44th and 26th respectively. Still, her early-season performances were enough to secure her the WRC Ladies' Cup. This was not well-received by some of the other female competitors. They believed that she had been awarded the cup for entering more rallies than other women who had scored better individual results, and she was labelled a "pot hunter" by some. I think this is a trifle unfair, as she started the season very well and managed some creditable overall finishes.

She also competed in French rallies in a Lancia that year.

After a considerable lay-off, Christine returned to the stages in 1997, driving the Citroen Saxo Kit Car which would later become the car to beat in the Super 1600 class. She was fourteenth in the Rallye Internationale du Var, with Karine Tabone.

Her rally career seems to end there. As well as taking on the stages, Christine also took part in ice-racing in France, as part of the high profile Andros Trophy series. In 2009, she made a guest appearance in two races of the French Super Production Championship, driving a Peugeot 306. She won one race from pole.

Since then, she has kept a low profile.

(Image from a Citroen promotional card)