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Ellina Mhlanga
Senior Sports Reporter
IN a move that is expected to encourage girls to explore the various opportunities within motorsport, Zimbabwe is, for the first time, scheduled to host the FIA Girls on Track event in September.
The programme is an initiative by the international governing body of motorsport, FIA, and was started in 2018 to increase the number of women involved in the sport.
The event is being hosted by Pole Position Karts, at their kart track venue in Eastlea on September 10, and are jointly promoting the event with Motorsport Zimbabwe, who are members of the FIA.
The main organiser, Kevin Dufty, said they are proud to be hosting such an event for the first time in Zimbabwe.
“We are proud and excited to be hosting this event and Zimbabwe will be one of the first countries in Africa to have a specific FIA Girls on Track programme. The facility at Pole Position Karts in Eastlea is worldclass and allows us, together with Motorsport Zimbabwe and other partners, to host an amazing programme to international standards.
“Hopefully, we can help lay the foundations for our future generation of girls in motorsport to achieve great things, whether that is locally or on the international stage.
“The main objective was to increase the number of women involved in motorsport by inspiring them to ‘Dare to be different’.
“The programme seeks to achieve this by raising awareness of the different careers available for women in motorsport, on and off track, defying stereotypes and empowering the next generation of young women by giving them confidence in what they can achieve.
“The initiative aims to create a shift in perceptions by engaging with girls who may never even have heard of motorsport. It’s about giving girls real experience of all the different aspects of motorsport, not just about driving, but also media, fitness and nutrition, engineering and all the various career prospects that are out there.”
Dufty said with a strong female presence in various motorsport positions in the country, they just need to encourage girls and young women to continue on that path.
“On the motor racing side, there are no reasons why women can’t compete with men at the highest levels of motorsport on an even playing field. With advances in race car design having significantly reduced the physical demands of racing, motorsport is more accessible to women than ever before.
“However, many young girls may never have heard of motorsport or those that have, might have experienced negative peer pressure. It is these girls that we have to encourage to get involved,” said Dufty.
The inaugural event is aimed at girls from eight to 12 years old and depending on the interest in the first event, the organisers are hoping to have another programme for 13 to 18-year-old girls.
“Our first pilot event is aimed at girls from 8 to 12 years old to encourage them to explore new opportunities and try motorsport in a safe, controlled environment. Once we gauge the interest, we would also like to do a programme for the older girls from 13 to 18 years old.
“While this would have similar content, it would also be focused more towards inspiring these girls future in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) fields and using motorsport to chase their dream careers,” said Dufty.
The programme is expected to positively impact on the girls not just on the track but to pursue their dreams in various areas and Dufty noted that this is just the first step.
Online Reporter