Gigi Bettencourt-Gomes

(This is the only image of Gigi as a rally driver I could find)

It took then-Hammersmith resident Gigi a few goes before she registered her first finish, but she became a familiar name on the British one-make championship scene in 2002 and 2003.

After some club rallying in a Vauxhall Nova she gained a sponsorship deal with Shropshire Rally School, who wanted to run her and Andrea Hall in the Volkswagen Polo championship in 2002. The deal didn't quite work out and Gigi only completed a few rounds, starting her campaign on the Scottish Rally. However, she still managed to finish the season in seventh. Her best finish was third in class on the Tempest Rally that year, despite having no brakes and gear problems for several stages. This drive earned her some "rookie of the year" plaudits from observers.

Still keeping with the one-make theme, she moved across to the Ford Ka championship in 2003 with a few good class results and a much improved finishing record. She also drove in some BTRDA rallies in a with her regular co-driver Paul Hudson, including the Red Dragon Rally and the North Humberside Forest Rally.

After 2003, she disappeared from the scene, although she did some motorsport journalism and attempted to secure a drive through this.

She now lives in Guernsey, is known as Gigi Bettencourt-Davison, and competes in Ironman Triathlons. She is Costa Rican by birth.

(Image source unknown)