She has sparked great controversy over the past years due to her uniqueness, and dozens of Arab and international media platforms have talked about her. She is Dania Aqeel, the first Saudi woman to participate in rallies and win the Baja World Championship. She was ranked among the most influential women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and despite her ability to prove herself and achieve several Unprecedented achievements during a period not exceeding five years, but her story reflects a great deal of determination, perseverance, love and passion for this world that began when she was ten years old.
Dania remembers her first driving experience when she was four years old, when her father bought her a bicycle with Barbie drawings and white tires. Over the course of several years after that, she loved playing with small cars and controlling them until she reached the age of ten, and here was the beginning of her love for the world of engines. One day her father took her to one of the shops. The big games and she saw the first go-kart in her life, which had a gasoline engine, and in fact, her father bought it for her, who was a car and racing enthusiast and knew a lot about the world of Formula 1. Maha always talked about driving mechanisms and ways to enter corners and achieve the fastest laps to show her brilliance and outperform her father in The time of the jack-of-all-trades when she was only thirteen years old.
Dania's love for engines continued over the years, and when she reached the age of seventeen, she was living in Britain. She applied for a driver's license three days before her birthday and bought her first car, a Mini Cooper.
Dania Aqeel entered the world of circuits in 2019 when she participated in a training program for riding fast motorcycles with a number of professional racers. Six months later, she was offered to participate in one of the local cycling championships in the Emirates. Then she contacted the Saudi Motor Federation to obtain a letter of no objection to competing in races, and the response was: The federation will issue her the first license to participate in speed bike races. This moment represented the starting point of Dania Aqeel’s sporting career, and she says that this is one of the moments she will never forget in her life. Indeed, she participated in the 2019/2020 season of the local Ducati Cup championship in the Emirates and won the title of best. Beginner racer.
This was followed by her presence in the BMR 600 championship in Bahrain during 2020, and here the Saudi racer faced a major blow. She was involved in a major accident during one of the test rounds, leaving her with severe injuries that included a broken spine. She says that the bike was a Kawasaki brand and she had never ridden it before. Before, she did not fully know how to respond, which was one of the reasons for her slipping into a tight hole at the end of the ring, while she decided that this would not be the end, but rather just the beginning.
Dania Aqeel took advantage of this period to write her book called Free Fall, a collection of short stories through which she narrates the most important experiences and everything she learned in life. Then in 2021, she decided to enter the world of rallying, where she participated in the Jordanian Championship in the Jordan Baja Car Race, then she moved on to compete as the first Saudi woman in the World Cup of Racing.
The weather on the first day of the Poland round was sunny, and the conditions helped Dania perform well. However, the next day, heavy rain fell on the racing area and the ground turned from a sandy surface to a muddy ground, which made the competition difficult and greatly changed the shape of the car’s movement and control, while Dania says that this situation He taught her a lot and it was a fun experience and she won her first championship this season in the T3 category, then in 2022 she participated in the same category but in the Dakar Rally, one of the most difficult challenges in motorsport, among 44 competitors, to be the first Saudi female competitor, Mashael Al-Obaidan, in this championship that started from Hail region in Saudi Arabia. The course extended for a distance of 4,000 km and included 12 stages in which Dania faced a variety of surfaces and sand. Dania was able to reach the finish line in eighth place out of 37 competitors in her category.
Dania Aqeel also participated in the 2023 round of the Dakar Rally, which spanned 5,000 km and continued over 16 days. The contestant was able to finish the race during this year’s season in 28th place.
Wael is an automotive content writer specializes in creating written content for Motor 283. Producing a wide range of content, including blog posts, articles, product descriptions, reviews, and technical guides related to cars, trucks, motorcycles, and other vehicles, with an unprecedented passion for cars, and motorcycles.
Women have always made their way in the world of car racing with difficulty, defying all stereotypes, views and societal expectations in a field that has been dominated by men for decades. The struggle for supremacy is particularly difficult in the Middle East, but that has not buried the dreams of many women to sit behind the wheel of racing cars on the Track, especially the team of Palestinian racers who called themselves the “Speed Sisters.” In the following lines, we will introduce you to them in a quick tour and how they were an inspiration to many ambitious girls who only accept achieving their dreams, no matter how impossible they seem.
In the heart of the Middle East, where societal norms often dictate gender roles, one Palestinian woman is defying stereotypes and tearing up the track as a street racer and drifter. Meet Noor, a trailblazer who is not only challenging conventions but also inspiring a generation of women across the region. As a member of the Speed Sisters, the Arab world's premier female racing team, Noor is making history with every turn of the wheel.
Hailing from Palestine, Noor's journey into the world of motorsports was anything but conventional. Growing up in a society where pursuits like racing were predominantly seen as male-dominated activities, she faced skepticism and opposition from many. However, fueled by her passion for speed and adrenaline, Noor refused to let societal expectations hold her back.
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While the survey results also showed lingering perceptions that women are less interested in performance cars (38%), have less knowledge of performance cars (39%), and are less skilled when it comes to driving them (37%), the findings interestingly showcased that the influence of external opinions holds little sway.
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