The Iron Dames, standard bearers for women in motorsport

In less than a month, the Iron Dames have written motorsport history. First in Lombardy in mid-July, during the 6 Hours of Monza as part of the World ChampionshipEndurance. Sarah Bovy then became the first polewoman in the history of the WEC, in the GTE-Am category. The next day, accompanied by Michelle Gatting and Rahel Frey, she scored the first podium for a 100% female crew in the championship. Only three weeks later, joined by Dorian Pin, the pilots of the Ferrari pink and black lit up the 24 Hours of Spa by winning the Gold category.

Successes that do not go unnoticed. The quartet broke new barriers and old prejudices. By seeking victory in the Walloon double clock, the Iron Dames did not just win a race: they became examples, pioneers, references. It's also perhaps the best advertisement for women in motorsport today. “What I hope is that this will encourage other women and potential sponsors to see that this is actually possible.” declared Belgian driver Sarah Bovy, one of the members of the Italian team.

“Every result you obtain is important for something bigger than yourself”

At a time when competitions like the W Series, a championship reserved exclusively for women, are strongly criticized by pilots themselves, the Iron Dames crew appears as an oasis of hope in the middle of a still very masculine universe.

@IronDames_ are racers. W series is a show, not a sport. https://t.co/0sqSCSeziE

— Sophia Floersch (@SophiaFloersch) July 31, 2022

But what gives them this aura is also their strength of character. On the circuits, once the helmet is put on their head, they are first drivers before being women. “I often say that none of us started motorsport because we wanted to champion a cause for women. We race because we are pilots, we love it, believes Sarah Bovy. But when you're part of a project like Iron Dames, you realize pretty quickly that everything you do, every result you get is important to something bigger than yourself. »

If the pole at Monza and the victory at Spa-Francorchamps were the first two stones of the building, the Iron Dames still have a whole story to build. Hungry for victories, they still want to win this season and show the world that gender is not a criterion for success in motorsport. “Where will it stop? What can we do ? I don't really have an answer to that, but we're going to keep fighting for results and keep sharing with our followers. We have a lot of races to come, we still have a lot of opportunities to fight for good positions. The expectation will be even higher now that we have shown we can win races. »

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