Aurelia Nobels

Aurelia Nobels is a Brazilian-Belgian driver born in the USA, who began racing in Danish Formula 4 in 2022, when she was fifteen. She has competed under both a Belgian and Brazilian license.

Her first race in the Danish championship at Jyllandsringen gave her a seventh place, which she improved to a sixth the next day. In an unusual move, she also entered the Brazilian F4 championship, picking up a twelfth place as her best finish at Mogi Guacu. Back in Europe, she joined the Spanish F4 series for its Spa away round, but was not competitive, only managing one 23rd place.

In July 2022, she was selected as a senior driver for the FIA’s Girls on Track initiative. This led to a run in the Italian F4 championship in 2023, along with its related Euro4 championship, for Prema. In addition to this, she was signed by the Ferrari driver academyShe was unplaced in both series. Her best finishes were two eleventh places, one in each series, at Imola and Catalunya. In Italy, she had to miss some rounds, including two of the Misano races. She had an accident in the first race and had to sit out the rest of the weekend.

In 2024, she joined Sainteloc Racing for the UAE F4 championship, in preparation for a season in F1 Academy. She was linked with a Ferrari-backed seat. Her UAE races didn't go brilliantly, with a 19th at Yas Marina her best result. She then did some Saudi F4 races and earned one third place at Losail. This was enough for eleventh in the championship.

Most of 2024 was taken up by F1 Academy, where she was twelfth for ART Grand Prix, despite several top-ten finishes, including a fifth at Zandvoort. She also found time for guest spots in Eurocup-4 and British F4, at Monza and Zandvoort. Her best finish at Zandvoort was 16th, and Monza, fourteenth.

Like many of her F1 Academy rivals, she did the 2025 winter season in Spain, competing in the Eurocup-4 winter series. ART Grand Prix ran her and two other F1 Academy drivers for a part-season. She was the best of the three, finishing 28th overall, with a best finish of fourteenth. Later in the year, she did the Mugello rounds of the Euro4 championship for AS Racing, finishing 23rd twice and 33rd once.

Her F1 Academy season, supported by Puma, was up and down, beginning badly with two DNFs at Shanghai, but ending with her first podium, a third place at Las Vegas. She was thirteenth overall and this was her last season of F1 Academy.

She left the Ferrari Driver Academy at the end of 2025 and her future plans are unknown.

(Image copyright Aurelia Nobels/Ferrari)

The Paris-Amsterdam Rally

 

Suzanne de la Meurthe and Madame Marquisan with their Hispano Suiza

1. Suzanne Deutsch de la Meurthe/Madame Marquisan (Hispano Suiza)

2. Comtesse Magdeleine de Ganay/Mademoiselle Gouin (Renault Reinastella)

3. Beatrice Reinach (Ballot)

4. Camilla Steinbrugge (Bugatti)

5. Madame Kaufman (Citroen)

6. Madame Mennesson (Talbot)

7. Comtesse Constance de Lubersac (Citroen)

8. Miss Thurnauer (Bugatti)

9. Madame Friedmann (Rosengart)

10. Madame Schumann (Citroen)

11. Madame Sambon (Voisin)

12. Madame Krebs (Talbot)

13. Claude Dadvisard (Citroen)

14. Mademoiselle Cremieux (Citroen)

15. Comtesse Marie de Jouvencel (Citroen)

16. Madame Calbet (Citroen)

The rally began at the Place de la Concorde in Paris on the 12th of May 1931. The sixteen entrants were waved off by Anne, the Dowager Duchesse d’Uzes and the leader of the Automobile Club Feminin. 

Like the Paris-Rome Rally that followed it, the Paris to Amsterdam event had a strong social element, but was also a serious long-distance trial, passing through northern France, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The first leg ran between Paris and Namur in Belgium, where a hillclimb was held, won by Suzanne Deutsch de la Meurthe.

Magdeleine de Ganay won the 20km regularity trial section between Gembloux and Wavre which followed. According to the Excelsior newspaper, her times matched the averages exactly. A points system based on these two events determined the final positions. Further pictures in the Club’s monthly magazine show the two leading passengers, who sat alongside the winners.

The competitive element of the rally was now over and the 16 cars made their way to Amsterdam’s Olympic stadium, via Brussels and Rotterdam. The results were announced at a gala dinner on the 14th, held at the Carlton Hotel in Amsterdam, after a day spent visiting Haarlem. The touring section continued with visits to The Hague, Vollendam and finally Luxembourg, via Arnhem and Utrecht, returning to France on Monday the 18th.

All sixteen cars finished. Many of the drivers remain elusive as to their full identities, although all seem to be members of the Club, wealthy and well-connected and based in France. Magdeleine de Ganay was a regular entrant in the women-only rallies of the time, winning at least one other of the club’s annual long distance rallies, plus the 1930 Paris-St. Raphael. The Comtesse de Lubersac, an American-born Frenchwoman, was seventh in the Paris-Rome Rally held the following year, along with Madame Calbet and Madame Mennesson. Noted art collector and one of the wealthiest women in France, Beatrice Reinach, was another who was a regular in the events held by the club. Camilla Steinbrugge was another socialite who mixed in more bohemian circles, reputedly a lover of the publisher Sylvia Beach.

Winner Suzanne Deutsch de la Meurthe was a committee member of the Automobile Club, but she was better known as a pioneering aircraft pilot.

(Image copyright Agence Rol)

Angelique Detavernier

 

Angélique Detavernier is an endurance racing specialist from Belgium.

Although she has been involved in motorsport from a young age, including as a driver manager, she only began racing in 2013 after winning a karting competition. She first raced in the VW Fun Cup in Belgium. 

For most of 2014, she raced a Porsche 997 GT3 Cup, mainly in the Dutch Supercar Challenge. Her best results were two third places in the GTB class, at Zolder and Assen. In the same car, she was fourth in the Zolder 24 Hours, with Miguel Vandereyt, Frederic Vervisch, Louis-Philippe Soenen, Francois Bouillon and Patrick van Glabeke. 

As well as the Porsche, she raced a Maserati in the Maserati Trofeo, finishing tenth at Spa and fourteenth at Abu Dhabi. She also returned to the Fun Cup and managed a pole position. 

In 2015, she had a second try at the Zolder 24 Hours in a Porsche 997. Driving as part of a four-driver team, she was 24th, and third in class. She was slated to enter the European rounds of the Maserati Trofeo this year and contested the Paul Ricard and Red Bull Ring rounds. Her best result was a twelfth place at Paul Ricard. At some point, she did some more Fun Cup racing, starting once from pole, and at least one Supercar Challenge race. 

Her third Zolder 24 Hours in 2016 gave her a debut top ten: a seventh place in a Porsche. In another two firsts, she raced an Audi R8 LMS in a couple of VdeV races and a Mercedes AMG in the Nurburgring round of the Blancpain Endurance Series. She was also third in a Fun Cup race in Dubai, 

In 2017 she did another couple of Blancpain Endurance races, driving an Audi R8 LMS. She was fourteenth in one GT Sports Club race at Spa, and did not finish the other. 

She had another guest outing in the car in 2018, again at Spa, in the 24H Series. She and her team-mates were eleventh in their class. This was in addition to a strong season in the GT Sports Club series, driving a Ferrari 488 rather than the Audi. She was eighth in the championship with a best finish of fourth, at the Hungaroring.

Having proved herself as a driver, there were more major races in different cars for her in 2019, firstly driving an AMG Mercedes GT4 in the Blancpain Endurance Series and the European GT4 Challenge. She was second in class at Zandvoort in the GT4 Series and third in class at the Nurburgring. She also did one Blancpain race in a Boutsen-Ginion BMW M6, finishing 22nd overall and fourth in class, and another in a Lamborghini Huracan. This time, she was fifth and tenth overall at Circuit de Catalunya.  

The worldwide coronavirus crisis curtailed motorsport severely in 2020 and Angelique did not race. In 2021, she added another string to her bow, doing three out of seven rounds of the Belcar championship in a Norma prototype and finishing third at Hockenheim and Zolder. 

Her focus switched from Belgium to France in 2022, racing a GT4-spec Audi R8 LMS in the FFSA GT championship. Her best result was a third place in the Am class at Magny-Cours. Her team-mate was Sebastien Rambaud.

She stuck with prototypes in France for 2023, racing in the Wolf Thunder Series and scoring at least one podium. Moving to Italy, she competed in the Italian Sport Prototype Cup in 2024, driving an Aprilia-engined Wolf. Hert best finish from four races was a fifth place at Monza. 

She is better-known as a model and was previously in a relationship with Formula E driver Stoffel Vandoorne.

(Image copyright Angelique Detavernier)

Female Rally Drivers Around the World: the Netherlands

 

Most of the entries in this post were previously part of other posts relating to European rally drivers. Anna van Vredenburch Limburg-Stirum has her own post.

Angelique Aufderhaar (pictured) - usually rallies a Ford Escort RS2000 in the Netherlands, with frequent outings in Germany. She has been active since at least 2008 and for the first couple of seasons, she used a MkI Escort. Her best results have been on different versions of the Hellendoorn Rally, with a twelfth place in the 2019 Hellendoorn Historic event her highest finish. In 2013, she was also thirteenth in the Hellendoorn Short Rally. Other cars she has rallied include a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV, which she used on and off between 2018 and 2021. In 2022, she concentrated on German events, in the RS2000. She did two Dutch rallies and one German event in 2023, finishing the Rallye Ostwestfalen in 38th place. In 2024, she finished one rally in the Escort, finishing 46th in the Legend Boucles a Bastogne event in Belgium. The following year, she finished all three of the rallies she entered, with a best finish of fourteenth, with a class win, in the NED GTC Historic Rally.

Lieke Bouman (Dautzenberg) - driver and co-driver active since at least 2001, when she co-drove for her brother, Bob Dautzenberg. Since then, she has won rallies as a navigator with different drivers. As a driver, she favours small cars, most recently a Renault Clio but also a Renault 5 and a Nissan Sunny. She specialises in shorter sprint rallies, usually in the Netherlands or Belgium, but often in Germany as well. Her best result has been an eighth place in the 2017 Twente Short Rally, driving a Honda Civic. This helped her to the Dutch ladies’ title that year. More recently, she was ninth in the 2019 JUMBO Short Rally, driving a Clio. She returned to competition in 2022 after a break and was 26th in the GTC Rally, in the Clio. After another break, she did a couple of rallies in 2025, using the Clio and a Peugeot 205. She did not finish either.

Louk Heidendahl – Dutch driver who was active in the 1960s. She was a regular on the Tulip Rally, and first entered in 1960, driving a DKW Junior with Ida de Fouw. The same pairing were 29th in 1961, this time driving a Saab 96. In 1962, she was fourth in the Ladies’ standings, and 59th overall, in the Saab, with erstwhile driver, Diana van Strien, on the maps. It was back to the DKW in 1963, but a change to an Alfa Romeo Sprint Veloce in 1964 brought her a pleasing 25th place. In 1965, she moved over to the co-driver’s seat, with Joop Heidendahl, in a Mercedes. She seems to have stopped rallying after that.

Marieke van Kamperdijk (Rietveld) - rallied a Peugeot 206 in the Netherlands in 2017. She was runner-up in a Dutch ladies’ championship held that year and got her season off to a strong start with an eighth overall in the Zeebodem Short Rally. She was also thirteenth in the Centraal Nederlands Short Rally. Her only rally outside the Netherlands was the Gronegau event in Germany. Despite her relatively strong debut year, she does not appear to have competed again. 

Diana van Strien – Dutch driver who competed in the Tulip Rally on at least three occasions, between 1960 and 1962. The first two rallies were as a driver, in a Renault Gordini, and she was co-driven by Truus van der Voorst Vader. In 1962, she was the co-driver to Louk Heidendahl, another Dutchwoman, in a Saab 96. Diana was from a motorsport family, and the 1960 Tulip Rally was not her first involvement with the sport. She is recorded in 1957 as taking part in the Vaals hillclimb, a round of the Dutch Touring Car Championship, in a Ford Taunus. She was second in class, and defeated her mother, whose name is not given. Diana may well have co-driven for her mother in rallies at about this time.

Titia Westerhof - Dutch driver active in the 1970s and early 1980s. She almost always drove an Opel Kadett, although she did try out an Opel Ascona and a  Renault 5 towards the end of her career in 1980. She entered the Tulip Rally three times, beginning as a works Opel entry in 1977. Her best year was 1978, when she won the Netherlands National class and finished 23rd overall. Her best outright finish came during the same year: she was eleventh in the AMAC International Rally. Mainly, she competed in the Netherlands, although she also entered some Belgian rallies, including the 1979 Condroz event, and one Swedish rally. The Sjuharadsnatta Opel Rally Jamboree was held on snow, as opposed to her favoured asphalt.

(Image copyright Lars Smook/tubantia.nl)

Maya Weug

 

Maya Weug is a Spanish-Dutch-Belgian driver who was the winner of an FIA Women in Motorsport single-seater talent search in 2020. She was accepted into the Ferrari driver academy as a result. Throughout her short career, she has represented all three countries, having been born in Spain to a Belgian mother and a Dutch father.

She was entered into the 2021 Italian F4 championship by the Iron Lynx team as part of her development. The squad is part of the same team that runs the all-female “Iron Dames” sportscar operation. Her best finish in the opening rounds was a 15th place at Paul Ricard, which was a rookie class win. She was later twelfth overall at Misano and came close to a top ten at Vallelunga. 

Her six guest races in German F4 gave her a debut top ten: ninth at the Red Bull Ring. 

Her second season in Italian F4 started with her first top ten finish, at Imola. She was tenth in Race 1 and sixth in Race 2. By the end of the season, she had racked up six more top-ten finishes at Misano, Vallelunga, the Red Bull Ring and Spa, the best of these being a pair of sevenths at Misano and the Red Bull Ring.

Her guest spots in the German series did not go so well to start with, although she scored another ninth at Zandvoort.

The FIA’s support is long-term and seems to be paying off; Maya was not on the pace right away, but she improved rapidly in her second year.

She moved up to Formula Reginal Europe (FRECA) in 2023, driving for KIC Motorsport. She was the Finnish team's only full-time driver and the highest-performing of the five who raced with them that year. She began as a midfielder but gained confidence mid-season, breaking into the top ten at Spa with a seventh and sixth spot, the first of six top-tens earned in the middle three rounds of the series. She was 17th overall.

For 2024, her links with the Ferrari F1 team led her to a rather odd move: a seat in the F1 Academy all-female F4 series as a Ferrari supported driver. She drove for the Prema team and finished third in the championship, after a win in the final round at Abu Dhabi. She had been a regular visitor to the podium for most of the year. There was also time for a guest appearance in FRECA at Imola, where she rejoined the KIC team. She was 22nd and 14th in her two races.

She continued in F1 Academy in 2025, now driving for MP Motorsport as a Ferrari-supported driver. She was one of this year's front-runners and the closest rival to Doriane Pin, who eventually won the title, helped by Maya being taken out on the green flag lap in the final round at Las Vegas. She was second in the championship, winning races at Jeddah, Zandvoort and Singapore.

Mid-season, she made a brief return to FRECA, deputising for the injured Tim Gerhards. She scored one 21st place at Hungary.

As she has now completed two seasons in F1 Academy, she has to move on. As part of her prize for her 2025 second place, she tested a Ferrari 296 GT3 with AF Corse.

Previously, she competed in international karting between 2013 and 2020 and won a junior title in 2016. She began karting in Spain in 2011, when she was seven.

(Image copyright Maya Weug)

Jane Gunningham

 

Jane Gunningham was one of Britain’s leading female rally drivers in the 1990s.

She competed to British Championship level between 1992 and 1997, mainly in a Subaru Impreza and a Peugeot 306. As well as home events, she occasionally drove in Europe and the Middle East.

Born in 1974, she started rallying early, at 18. She trained at the prestigious John Haugland rally school in Norway, and was highly-regarded by her mentor. 

Her first car was a slightly unusual one; a Mazda 323. It was her main car in 1992 and 1993 and it did not bring her a great deal of success. The 1992 Vauxhall Astra Stages ended in retirement, then failed to finish her first three events of 1993, including a roll on the first stage of the Granite City Rally in Scotland. Her best event was the Midland Rally in Welshpool. She was 25th overall and sixth in class. Gaining more confidence towards the end of the year, she was 28th in the Premier Stages, from 72 finishers.

A season divided between the BTRDA in the UK and the Middle East championship followed in 1994. Jane joined up with the experienced Pauline Gullick to rally another Mazda 323 in the Qatar and Jordan Rallies. She was 19th in Jordan but her finishing position in Qatar is not recorded.

A 1600cc Peugeot 205 was waiting for her back in the UK. The clutch had failed on the season-opening Wyedean Stages, but otherwise it was a reliable car on gravel. Her best overall BTRDA result was a 31st place in the Castrol Crystal Forest Rally, but she also finished second in class on the Woodpecker Stages. Her 53rd overall sounds less impressive, but there were 141 finishers in the event. 

Away from the BTRDA series, she entered the Masters of Morden Mini Tempest Stages, finishing a career-best seventh. Her co-driver was Julia Rabbett, who would sit beside her for her first RAC Rally later in the year. She was 68th, gaining many places on the final day and making up for some early time penalties.

The British Rally Championship was the logical next step in her career. After a pre-season 21st place in the 1995 Kall Kwik Stages, she switched from a 205 to a 306 and took on her first BRC event, the Rally of Wales. She was 32nd, thirteenth in class, not helped by penalties. After the retirement of the highly-regarded Stephanie Simmonite, she took the lead of the Ladies’ points table.

Sadly, this was to be her last finish of the year, handing the Ladies’ title to Stephanie Simmonite. She retired from the other four BRC rallies, crashing out of two and suffering mechanical failures on the others.

She had more success in the 1996 British championship, ending the season 19th overall in the 306 after three points finishes. The best of these came from a 20th place on the Ulster Rally, just behind her old mentor John Haugland. She was also 22nd on the Manx Rally. 

Away from the BRC, she and her regular navigator Joyce Champion travelled to Belgium for the Ypres 24 Hours. Driving the 306, Jane was 57th and eleventh in class.

Her 1997 season began with a one-off run in a SEAT Ibiza for the Scottish Rally, but she crashed out on the third stage. The rest of the year was spent in a Group N Subaru Impreza, mostly in BRC rallies and co-driven by Stella Boyles. Once more, the Ulster Rally was her best event and she was 19th, sixth in class. This was followed by a 20th place on the Woodpecker Rally. 

Her only other WRC entry, in the 1997 RAC Rally, ended in retirement following an accident on the final day. This would prove to be her final event.

She now lives in Scotland.

Caroline Grifnee

Caroline Grifnée was a driver and team manager from Belgium.

She first made her mark on the scene when she drove for the Daikin team in Belcar in 2005 and 2006, with Alexandra van de Velde. In the first year, she was a third driver in a BMW Mini, but she replaced team leader Vanina Ickx in 2006. Their car was due to be a Ferrari 360, but a heavy practice crash and loss of a sponsor meant this was changed to a BMW 120d. 

The team also took part in some Dutch Supercar rounds and won their class at Spa. 

Belcar was not her first racing adventure. She had begun competing in a 2CV in 2000, which she raced until 2002. One year, she was part of the winning team for the Spa 2CV 24 Hours. She also took part in the 2003 Toyota Yaris Cup in Belgium.

After leaving the Daikin set-up at the end of 2006, she concentrated on her career at Renault Sport, moving from logistics to project management for the Renault Sport experience.

Back in a car on the international stage, she drove a Porsche 997 GT3 for Speed Lover at the 2009 Dubai 24 Hours. Her team-mates were Jose Close, Victor Rodrigues and Jim Michaelian. They did not finish. 

In 2009 and 2010, she competed in Renault one-make series, including the Renault Megane Eurocup in 2010. Unfortunately, her time in the Megane series was ended by a massive crash at Silverstone, which observers note she was lucky to survive. The car flipped five times and lost most of its bodywork, but Caroline walked away from the accident needing only precautionary treatment.

In 2011, she drove again in the Dubai 24 Hours, winning Class A2 in a Renault Clio as part of the iOpener team. She raced in the Endurance section of the Clio Cup the following year.

Apart from a course car run in the 2013 Criterium Jurassien in a Renault Twingo, alongside Margot Laffite, she did not actually compete much for a few years. Her work at Renault led to occasional guest appearances like the Jurassien rally.

After 2014, she took to historic racing. The first historic car she drove was a Porsche 911 in the Le Mans Classic, and she was 31st in Plateau 4. Her co-driver was Carolyn Twaites. 

In 2017, she raced a Chevron B16 at Spa, part of the FIA Masters Historic Sportscar Championship. She was 17th. In 2018 and 2019, she continued in historics, racing the Chevron at Le Mans and also a Ford Escort and Porsche 911 around Europe. The MkI Escort was a favoured car for a few seasons and a video of her racing at Paul Ricard in 2019 became a Youtube hit, earning her plaudits for her impressive car control. She finished sixth in class from 23rd on the grid, with a class win.

She raced the Chevron at Estoril in the 2020 Classic Endurance race, finishing second in class. 

As a team manager, some of her most noted successes were drivers she helped through the DAMS Formula Renault 3.5 team. Among them was 2014 winner Carlos Sainz Jr.

She followed DAMS into Formula E in 2015 and was part of its management team for two teams’ and one drivers’ championship, alongside Alain Prost. After the 2017 season, she left to found her own track day company, Historic Track Day by Caroline, specialising in events for historic cars.

Caroline died suddenly in February 2021. The remaining “By Caroline” track days planned will take place.

Daria Bakai

Daria Bakai, also known as Dasha, is a Ukrainian driver who rallies Mitsubishi Lancers in her home championship, regularly finishing in the top ten.

Dasha was keen on rally cars from a very early age. Her first road car was a Mitsubishi Lancer which she had saved up for between the ages of 18 and 20, although in a Red Bull interview, she confessed to having several minor accidents in it. Despite the roadgoing Lancer not being best-suited to high-speed sprints, she began her competition career in drag racing. She decided on rallying as her preferred career after spectating at the Yalta Rally. 

She began rallying seriously in 2014 and competed extensively in both the Ukrainian championship and the regional Kherson Cup. Her car was a very old Group N Subaru Impreza, as it was the only decent rally car she could afford. Her best result was a sixth place in the Kozatske Rally, but her most prestigious result was probably her tenth place in the Galicia Rally. This was her second top-ten of the year, after another tenth in the Skhydnytsia Rally. She was fourth in class in the Ukrainian championship. 

In 2015, she was still rallying the Impreza. Her best result was a sixteenth place in the Yedyna Krayina One Country Rally. 

In 2016, she performed well in Ukrainian championship rallies. She was seventh in the Golden Fall Rally in the Impreza and eighth in the Khersonske Rally in a Peugeot 206. This was despite having to commute home from Belgium, where she was working. She also found time to compete in Belgium for the 6 Hours of Kortrijk, driving a Ford Fiesta. 

In the end, rallying won out over her work and she moved back to Ukraine. A short break followed while she sold the Impreza and searched for a quicker car. 

Half-way through the 2017 season she finally got to drive her favourite car in anger, rallying a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X in a limited programme. She was third in the XADO DRC rally and fourth in the Rally Kuyainik. 

She repeated her third place in the XADO event in 2018, alongside two other top-ten finishes in Ukrainian rallies. One of these was a ninth place in the Rallye Uman, a Ukrainian championship round where she ran as high as fifth.

Her 2019 season in the Lancer was affected by a couple of bad accidents but when she finished, she was strong. She was third in the Rally Severyn, having won the first stage, and fourth in the Rallye Shchuroftsi. 

Her final championship position was sixth in the regional Liman Cup and would probably have been much higher without the mishaps, which included a fire in the XADO event and radiator trouble in the preceding Rallye Kuyalnik. 

Daria was unable to start her season in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, but she was more than ready when the Ukrainian championship did get under way. Driving the same Lancer, she was fourth in her national championship with four top-five positions. The best of these was a fourth place in the Rally Stolytsia. She was fifth in the Galicia and Trembita rallies.

She was fifth in both the Ukrainian and Liman championships in 2021, driving the Evo X. Her best result was another podium, a third in the Rally Kuyalnik, but she was not far off in the Rally Trembita, finishing fourth and less than 2s off third.

Sarah Bovy

Sarah (left) on the BRCC podium in 2012

Sarah Bovy is a Belgian driver who competes in Europe, and is based in Belgium.

She started her senior motorsport career in 2004, in the Formula Renault Academy. She was just fifteen years old, and reached the final on her first attempt. The following year, she joined the Belgian Formula Renault 1.6 championship, and scored two podiums. She was driving for Thierry Boutsen’s team. Sadly, her funding ran out after only three races.

Although she had showed promise in single-seaters, it was saloon cars that she initially gravitated towards. Her first Spa 12 Hours was in 2006, and she was 18th in a Renault Clio. She also took part in the 10h Zolder race and the BTCS 25 Hours in the Clio, as part of a multi-driver team. For the 12 Hour event, she was a guest driver in the Speed Action team. This was after another guest spot in the Belgian Legends championship, which gave Sarah a win. At the end of the season, she was named as the Belgian female driver of the year.   

In 2007, she took a step up, and moved into international sportscar competition. She drove a Gillet Vertigo Streiff for Belgian Racing. Sharing with the experienced Renaud Kuppens, she was 34^th in the Spa 12 Hours. The pair were joined by Bas Leinders for the Spa 24 Hours, but did not finish. Sarah was 18 years old, and one of the youngest people to have driven a sportscar on the Spa circuit. She had also only just passed her road driving test.

For the next two seasons, she undertook testing and development work in a variety of different cars, supported by Gravity Sport Management. She did not do any competitive racing.

At the start of 2010, Sarah was back in a sportscar, driving a Porsche 996 in the first round of the Belcar championship, at Zolder. She and her team-mate, “Brody”, were 26^th. She tried to qualify the Porsche for the Spa 24 Hours, but could not manage. Later, she returned to the Belgian Touring Car Championship (BTCS) and drove a Mitsubishi Lancer for the first time. She did two races with Jean-Pierre de Wauwer, and was 18^th in the championship after one podium finish. Her BTCS programme included the Spa 12 Hours, and she was seventh. Round-the-clock enduros were something of a theme for 2010, as she also raced in the VW Fun Cup 25 Hours, held at Spa.

In 2011, she was meant to race a Ginetta for JHR Developments in the British GT Championship, but the deal fell through. Instead, she carried on with development work for Formula 3. For the past couple of seasons, she had spent time helping to develop a number of cars. For a change, she competed in the Rally Televie in a Porsche Cayman, and towards the end of the year, she was one of the finalists for the FIA Women in Motorsport Scirocco-R Shootout. She did not win the Scirocco Cup prize drive.

In 2012, it was back to sportscars, and she drove a McLaren MP4-12C in the Spa 24 Hours with Boutson Ginion Racing. The team consisted of Sarah, Marlène Broggi, Jérôme Thiry and Massimo Vignali. They did not finish. For the rest of the year, she was involved in the BRCC series, in a GC10 V8 BMW. She was second in her class of the Long Races championship, as part of a rotating squad of drivers for the GC team.  

In 2013, she raced the GC10 in the Dutch GT championship, finishing eighth in one race at Spa and fifth in another. She was twelfth overall in the BRCC Long Race category, with two class wins, and won the Silhouette ProEvo class. She also became the first woman to race an Aston Martin Vantage GT3, in the Spa 24 Hours, but she did not finish.

In 2014, the Long Race series was dropped, and she did not take part in the BRCC.  

2015 was mostly spent in the Renault Sport Trophy. She drove a Renault RS in some races at Spa. She was third in a Prestige (sprint) race, and fourth in an Endurance race. Her team-mate was Michela Cerruti. Away from Renault, she drove a works-supported Peugeot 208 in the Hankook 24h Series, for Team Altran. She raced at Mugello and Brno. The Brno 12 Hours gave her a class win, and 14^th overall, driving in a team of three. A different team, including Sarah, did not quite get to the end of the Mugello race.

She did some more endurance racing in a Peugeot 208 in 2016. At the start of the season, she contested the Dubai 24 Hours, but did not finish due to mechanical issues. She had more luck in the Silverstone 24 Hours, where she was fourth overall, with a class win. Her team was Altran Peugeot, and she was part of a five-driver squad. 

Most of her season was spent racing a Lamborghini Huracan in the European Lamborghini Super Trofeo. She was fourteenth in the Pro-Am class, and her best race result was thirteenth, at Spa.  

She raced the Huracan again in 2017, entering the Spa 24 Hours, which ran as a round of the Blancpain GT Series. She was sixth in the Amateur class. 

The Huracan came out again for the 2018 Spa 2 Hours. Sarah and her three team-mates were second in the Group N class, 47th overall. 

In 2019, she is part of a revolving cast of female drivers in an R24-run Ligier LMP3 in the Asian Le Mans Series. She and Stephane Kox were seventh at Shanghai in January.

The 2019 summer season was spent as part of the all-female W Series. Sarah was chosen as a driver but only as a reserve, so she only made two starts. She was meant to start her home Zolder race as it was her birthday, but her car caught fire on the startline. She was dropped from W Series in 2020. Later, she confessed that she did not fit particularly well in a single-seater due to her height. 

Motor racing as a whole was affected by the coronavirus crisis in 2020. Sarah announced towards the end of the year that she was going truck racing with the Lion Truck team in 2021. She did one race at Nogaro to try out the MAN truck.

As well as putting together her truck deal, she did five races in the French Ligier JS Cup for spec sportscars. She shared the MT Racing car with Thierry Petit. They were 25th in the championship. 

Returning to sportscar racing proved a wise move. Sarah was asked to join the all-female Iron Dames team for 2022, racing their Ferrari 488 in the WEC and other championships. 

She was one of the main squad for that year's WEC and made her debut at Le Mans, finishing ninth in the LMGTE Am class and 36th overall with Rahel Frey and Michelle Gatting. The same trio tackled the Monza and Bahrain rounds with a best class finish of eighth.

Alongside Manuela Gostner and Doriane Pin, she also piloted the Ferrari in the first three rounds of the Michelin Le Mans Cup GT3 championship, although a practice crash meant that she was unable to start at Catalunya. She was second at Monza and third at Paul Ricard.

In addition to this schedule, she and the Iron Dames found time to make guest appearances in the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe and the Italian GT Championship, in the Ferrari, plus rejoining Rahel and Michelle for two rounds of the ELMS. They earned two third places at Spa and Portimao in the ELMS.

She was a main driver for the Iron Dames in 2022, doing five of the six WEC rounds in the Ferrari. The WEC season started slowly, with tenth in LMGTE at Sebring and then a slightly disappointing twelfth at Le Mans, but three LMGTE Am-class podiums followed at Monza, Fuji and Bahrain, taking them up to fifth in the class championship.

The same team picked up even more podiums in the Fanatec GT World Challenge, winning their class at Spa after finishing second at Paul Ricard on the way to championship second. Another win followed in the ELMS, the final race of the season at Portimao, following a second at Spa. They were third in their class championship.

Sarah stayed a core member of the team for 2023. They had two new cars: a Porsche 911 for WEC and a Lamborghini Huracan for IMSA and the Fanatec GT World Challenge. WEC and the Porsche proved to be the most effective, winning the LMGTE Am class at the season-ending Bahrain race. A third at Portimao earlier and some solid fourth places helped them to second in the class championship, in what was the final season of LMGTE competition. They were fourth in class at Le Mans after running much higher for much of the race but losing ground in the last few hours.

The Dames's IMSA season was limited to four rounds and Sarah only did two of them. Michelle and Rahel were 18th in the Daytona 24 Hours and eleventh at Sebring. They also raced at Watkins Glen and Road Atlanta, in common with many other GTD teams who did not run the full season. Sebring remained their best finish. 

Their GT Wold Challenge season was affected by an early retirement from the Spa 24 Hours, which counted for three of the six point-scoring rounds. Their best result was 28th place overall at Monza, the first race of the season.

Sarah's fourth Le Mans was in a new class, LMGT3, and in a new car, a Lamborghini Huracan. She and her Iron Dames team-mates Rahel Frey and Michelle Gatting were fifth in class and 32nd overall. 

She raced the same car in that year's WEC and finished eighth in the LMGT3 championship. As well as their Le Mans result, they were fifth at Spa and Fuji. Across the Atlantic, the Dames entered five IMSA rounds in the Lamborghini, helped by Doriane Pin for the season-opening Daytona 24 Hours. They were sixth in class in that race, 25th overall. Sarah then got a puncture in qualifying for the Sebring 12 Hours, meaning she did not set a time, but the Dames got on the grid, only to retire with accident damage. After a break, they rejoined the championship for Watkins Glen, Indianapolis and Petit Le Mans.

Sarah's best results came in the European Le Mans Series, driving a Porsche 911 with Rahel and Michelle. They won the LMGT3 class at Imola and were second at Portimao, with Sarah setting the pole time for their class on four occasions. They were fourth overall.

2024 was Sarah's last season in WEC with the Dames, as her FIA driver classification changed and she became ineligible to compete at the same level as the other Dames. She was moved to the Asian Le Mans series squad for 2025, driving a Porsche with Michelle and Celia Martin.

The Dames' 2025 IMSA season was cut short after the Daytona and Sebring races. Sarah, Michelle and Rahel were eighth in their class at Daytona (with Karen Gaillard as fourth driver) and then eleventh at Sebring. The team was supposed to return later in the year with another car, but this did not happen.

At Le Mans itself, Sarah received a late call-up for the team after Michelle broke her foot. She had been practicing driver changes during an official test day. Sarah stepped back in and helped the team to tenth in class, 48th overall..

A Dames team contested the ELMS again that year and it was their most successful entry. Sarah, Michelle and Celia raced an LMGT3 Porsche 911. They scored one class win at Barcelona and were 25th overall. The team finished every race and were third in the final round at Portimao, coming fourth in the championship. This mirrored their finish at the Spa 4 Hours, where they were also fourth in class, and 31st overall.

The Iron Dames WEC programme was cancelled at the end of 2025. Although the team itself will carry on in motorsport, Michelle's future plans are not clear. 

Before joining the Iron Dames, Sarah had planned a season in the French truck racing championship. She does not appear to have taken part.

She is the daughter of Quirin Bovy, who raced touring cars in Europe in the 1970s and 1980s.

(Image copyright letihon.be) 

Naomi Schiff

Naomi with the KTM X-Bow in 2015

Naomi Schiff is a Belgium-based South African driver. She is one of the most cosmopolitan speedqueens on this site, with a Belgian father and a Rwandan mother. She spent much of her childhood in South Africa, where she began racing. Currently, she competes under the South African flag, although she has previously raced on a Belgian license.

Naomi’s father raced himself when he was younger, but he did not push her into motorsport. She caught the racing bug at a karting birthday party held by a friend. By the age of twelve, she was racing her own kart.

Following a successful kart career in South Africa, she moved up to Formula Volkswagen in 2010, still only aged 16. She did six races, with a best finish of sixth, and was 17th overall.

Her Formula Volkswagen season was accompanied by some more karting, and she continued to race karts, with some success, in 2011. At this time, she was studying for exams, and also modelling, in addition to her racing activities.

After that, she moved to Belgium, and raced a Norma M20 in four rounds of the Belgian Special Open Trophy, managing a second in her first race, with no testing beforehand. She was also fifth and sixth at Spa. Unfortunately, the owner of the team for which she was driving vanished, and took all of her sponsor money with him. This was the end of her season.

A period on the sidelines followed, and she used this as an opportunity to finish her education. She decided afterwards to decamp from South Africa to Belgium full-time, and to pursue motor racing as a career. This was the end of her modelling days, and she was now on the lookout for sponsorship and racing opportunities.

She reappeared in 2013, racing in different machinery in different parts of the world. She was back in a Radical for two rounds of the Dutch Supercar Challenge, giving her another two sixth places, after making a guest appearance at the Motorland meeting of the Formula Renault Eurocup. She was less successful there, with one 34th place. A chance meeting then led to a new career direction; she was due to test a Lamborghini Gallardo for the Reiter Engineering team, but when she arrived, a customer had already claimed the car. Later that day, she met the driver, a Chinese racer and team owner. When Naomi explained that the drive she was testing for had been taken, the team owner offered her his own race seat, in the Clio Cup in China. So it was off to Southeast Asia, which was a good move. She won her second Chinese Clio Cup race, after coming second in her first, against experienced local drivers, at Chengdu. At Guangdong, she picked up another win, but did not finish her other race. In between, she did two Asian Formula Renault races, and was sixth and seventh at Zhuhai. Whilst in China, she guested in some rounds of the Scirocco-R Cup there, with at least one second place. Late in the northern hemisphere season, she was one of the twelve entrants in the VW Scirocco-R Shootout for female drivers, held in Germany. Lucile Cypriano was the eventual winner.

She intended to compete in the North Europe Formula Renault series in 2014, but this fell through. She returned to the Chinese Clio Cup, invited back by her 2014 team, and won it convincingly, with four victories. In Europe, she competed in the Zolder 24 Hours, in a Wolf GB08 sportscar, and was seventh overall, with Jonathan Pizzuti, Kurt Thiers and Guglielmo Belotti.  

In 2015, she worked with Reiter Engineering again, driving a KTM X-Bow in the Nova GT4 Euro Series. She entered the championship for the Slovakiaring round, with Reinhard Kofler, and was rewarded with a third place and a win. She has also achieved two fourth places at the Red Bull Ring. As well as the GT4 Series, Naomi also drove a Lamborghini Gallardo for the Reiter team at last, in the GT Sports Club series for “gentlemen” drivers.

She competed in the GT4 series in again in 2016, in a Reiter-prepared KTM X-Bow. She only did a part-series, with her best finish being a seventh place, at Pau.

In 2017, she began the year with a run in the Dubai 24 Hours, in the X-Bow. She was part of an all-female team with Marylin Nierderhauser, Anna Rathe and Caitlin Wood. They ran as high as fourth in their class, but a collision with another car put them out of the running. They just made it to the end, in 72nd place.

Most of her season was spent in a slightly different all-female team, but with the same car. She raced in the GT4 European Series, usually with Marylin Niederhauser and once with Caitlin Wood, for RYS Team WP. The season was not a huge success and the team did not do the whole calendar. Being disqualified from the opening round at Misano did not help. Naomi did not receive a radio message from the team informing her of a drive-through penalty due to a too-early driver change.

Her best result was a sixth place at the Slovakiaring. Naomi was 28th in the championship individually, with two points fewer than Marylin.

She did not do as much racing in 2018 as in previous years. In May, she drove the X-Bow in the Nurburgring 24 Hours with Laura Kraihamer, Lena Strycek and Rahel Frey. They were second in class and 39th overall. Later in the year, she teamed up with Laura and the True Racing regulars for the Catalunya round of the 24H Series. They were second in class again and ninth overall.

Naomi was signed with the Reiter team, who run the Lamborghini and KTM works sportscar teams, as a junior driver. This araangement appears to have come to an end in 2019. 

At the start of 2019 she was accepted as one of the 20 W Series drivers and raced around Europe in a regional F3 during the summer. Her time out of a single-seater was somewhat evident and she was not one of the quicker drivers in the series, earning a best finish of tenth on-track and 16th in the championship, missing the cut for automatic entry in the 2020 W Series. 

Since then, she has acted as W Series' Diversity and Inclusion officer, and was named as a reserve driver in 2021. She did not race.

(Image copyright KTM)

Female Drivers in the Spa 24 Hours, 1974-2000

Henny Hemmes and Huub Vermeulen

The Spa 24 Hours ran continuously throughout the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. From 1974 to 1981, it was part of the Trophée de l'Avenir, with one "guest spot" as an ETCC race in 1976. In 1981, it was also included in the World Endurance Championship, before switching back to an ETCC event in 1982. From 1989 to 2000, it was still a touring car race, but not part of a major championship. During this time, female drivers featured in every race, and scored many good finishes. Henny Hemmes was the queen of Spa at this time, racing in the 24 hours fourteen times, with a best finish of second. The first part of this list can be found here. 

1974

Martine Renier ("Tintin")/Guy Deschamps/Jeannot Sauvage (Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV) - 7th
Martine Renier ("Tintin")/Eric Mandron/Edgar Gillessen (Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV) - 14th
Yvette Fontaine/Claude Bourgoignie (Ford Capri II) – DNF

1975

Yvette Fontaine/”Pedro” (BMW 3.0 CSi) – 2^nd

Christine Beckers/Jenny Birrell/Marianne Hoepfner (Triumph Dolomite) – 24^th

1976

Henny Hemmes/Loek Vermeulen (Toyota Celica GT) – 21^st

Yvette Fontaine/Stuart Graham/Reine Wisell (Chevrolet Camaro) – DNF

1977

Henny Hemmes/Loek Vermeulen/Huub Vermeulen (Chevrolet Camaro Z28) – 6^th

1978

Henny Hemmes/Loek Vermeulen/Hans Deen (Chevrolet Camaro Z28) – DNF

Christine Beckers/Daniel Rombaut/Huub Nijsten (Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV) – DNF

Lella Lombardi/Thierry Boutsen/Marc Duez (Toyota Sprinter Tueno) – DNF

1979

Henny Hemmes/Loek Vermeulen (Chevrolet Camaro Z28) – 18^th

Christine Beckers/Pascal Witmeur/Jean-Paul Libert (Chevrolet Camaro Z28) – N/C

Anny-Charlotte Verney/Jean-Pierre Delaunay/Cyril Grandet (Ford Escort II RS 2000) – DNF

1980

Christine Beckers/Heinz-Jürgen Hoffknecht/Marc Piessens (VW Scirocco GTi) – DNF

Henny Hemmes/Loek Vermeulen/Huub Vermeulen (Chevrolet Camaro Z28) – DNF

1981

Marianne Hoepfner/Derek Bell/Alain Cudini/Jean-Louis Trintigant (BMW 530i) – 7^th

Henny Hemmes/Loek Vermeulen (Chevrolet Camaro Z28) – DNF

Anny-Charlotte Verney/Jean-Louis Schlesser/Alain Ferté (Ford Capri III) – DNF

Kathy Rude/Quirin Bovy/Jean-Claude Lagniez (Chevrolet Camaro Z28) – DNF

1982

Lella Lombardi/Tony Palma/Marcello Gallo (Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV6) – 12^th

Henny Hemmes/Loek Vermeulen/Huub Vermeulen (Chevrolet Camaro) – DNF

1983

Henny Hemmes/Fred Frankenhout/Hans van der Beek (Mazda RX-7) – 14^th

Lella Lombardi/Roberto Marazzi/Giancarlo Naddeo (Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV6) – DNF

1984

Henny Hemmes/Břetislav Enge (BMW 635 CSi) – 11^th

Lella Lombardi/Giorgio Francia/”Tango” (Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV6) – 16^th (1^st in Division 2)

1985

Lella Lombardi/Rinaldo Drovandi/”Spiffero” (Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV6) – DNF

Annette Meeuvissen/Arno Wester/Jörg van Ommen (Ford Escort RS 1600i) – result unknown

1986

Lella Lombardi/Rinaldo Drovandi/Roberto Castagna (Alfa Romeo 75) – 8^th

Anny-Charlotte Verney/Chantal Grimard/Henny Hemmes (Toyota Corolla GT) – 25^th

1987

Annette Meeuvissen/Mercedes Stermitz/Gerrit van Kouwen (BMW M3) – 7^th

1988

Ellen Lohr/Frank Schmickler/Michael Bartels (BMW M3) – 7^th

Patricia Bertapelle/Valentin Bertapelle/Freddy Fruhauf (BMW 635 CSi) – 24^th

Kaori Okamoto/Kaoru Hoshino/Keiichi Suzuki (Toyota Corolla GTi) – N/C

Jenny van Hilten/Evert Bolderheij/ Bernard Winderickx (Ford Sierra RS 500) – DNF

Henny Hemmes/Claude Holvoet/Eddy van Esch (Toyota Corolla GTi) – DNF

1989

Kaori Okamoto/Morio Nitta/Hideshi Matsuda (Toyota Corolla GT) – 12^th

Jenny van Hilten/Bram van Hilten/Philips (Honda Civic) – 34^th

1990

Ellen Lohr/Altfrid Heger/Patrick Slaus/Franz Engstler (BMW M3) – 5^th

Anny-Charlotte Verney/Hideo Fukuyama/Naoki Hattori (Nissan Skyline GT-R) – 12^th

Henny Hemmes/Peter Seikel/Stanislao de Angelis (Honda Civic V-Tec) – 19^th (1^st in Class N2)

Kaori Okamoto/Morio Nitta/Patrick Snijers (Toyota Corolla GT) – DNF

1991

Kaori Okamoto/Naoki Nagasaka/Phil Dowsett (Toyota Corolla GT) – 20^th

Henny Hemmes/Dagmar Suster/Lothar Schörg (Honda Civic V-Tec) – 21^st

Giovanna Amati/Patrick de Radigues/François Turco (Peugeot 309 GTi) – DNF

1992

Annette Meeuvissen/Marc Gindorf/Heiner Weis (BMW M3) – 17^th

Henny Hemmes/Astrid Hild/Thomas Müller (Honda Civic V-Tec) – 23^rd (1^st in Class NB1.6)

Kaori Okamoto/Morio Nitta/Suzuki (Toyota MR-2) – 24^th

Jutta Kleinschmidt/André Carlier/D. Phillips (BMW M5) – N/C

Junko Mihara/Masahiro Matsunaga/Hideo Uehara (Toyota MR-2) – DNF

1993

Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Luigino Pagotto (Porsche 911 Carrera RS) – 9^th

Kaori Okamoto/Morio Nitta/Keiichi Suzuki (Toyota MR-2) – DNF

1994

Kumi Sato/Daniel Brillat/Patrick Bastiaens (Honda Civic V-Tec) – 13^th

Junko Mihara/Satoshi Yamaguchi/Masahiro Matsunaga (Toyota Corolla) – 16^th

Florence Duez/Blaton/Alain Thiebaut (Renault Clio) – 18^th

Kaori Okamoto/Morio Nitta/Keiichi Suzuki (Toyota Carina E) – DNF

Kate Rafanelli/Didier Stassart/Benoit Galand (BMW 325i) – DNF

1995

Florence Duez/Paul Grutman/Michel Schmitz (Renault Clio) – 18^th

Junko Mihara/Michiko Okuyama/Kumi Sato (Toyota Corolla) – 19^th

Katja Müller/Dietmar Konopka/Torsten Neuenbölen (Renault Clio) – DNF

1996

Kate Rafanelli/Yolanda Surer/Florence Duez (BMW M3) – 4^th (1^st in Spa 3.0 class)

Isolde Holderied/Freddy Loix/Renaud Verreydt (Toyota Carina GTi) – 8^th

Vanina Ickx/Christian Jupsin/Pascal Tillekaerts (Honda Civic VTi) – 16^th

Sylvie Delcour/Michel Lambermont/Bernard Dethier (Nissan Sunny GTi) – DNF

Heather Spurle/B. Lawrence/Luff (Peugeot 306 16S) – DNF

1997

Tamara Vidali/Yvan Muller/Brad Jones (Volkswagen Golf TDi) – 12th

Sylvie Delcour/Michel Lambermont/Frédéric Baugnée (Renault Clio Williams) – 25^th

Vanina Ickx/Kate Rafanelli/Florence Duez (BMW M3) – DNF

Paula Cook/Luca Canni-Ferrari/Nicola Bertolucci (BMW M3) – DNF

1998

Sylvie Delcour/Mathias Viaene/Frédéric Baugnée (BMW 320i) – 14^th

Florence Duez/Alain Courmont/Hervé Lelong (Suzuki Baleno) – 26^th

Vanina Ickx/Jacky Ickx (Renault Mégane) – DNF

1999

Vanina Ickx/Mathias Viaene/Martial Chouvel (Renault Mégane) – 5^th

Sylvie Delcour/Damien Chaballe/Etienne Baugnée (BMW 320i) – 7^th

2000

Vanina Ickx/Anthony Beltoise/Thierry van Dalen (Peugeot 306 GTi) – 3^rd

Fanny Duchateau/Jean-François Hemroulle/Tim Verbergt (VW Bora TDi) – 6^th (1^st in SPD class)

Sylvie Delcour/Eric Jamar/Frédéric Baugnée (BMW 320i) – DNF

Catherine Liegeois/Michel Wilders/Alexandre Leens (Honda Integra Type R) – DNF

(Image from www.racehstorie.nl)