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On Wednesday, Michele Mouton, the former rally racer from France, had said she would like to see women competing against men in motorsport events instead of participating in women-only events.
Nada Zeidan of Qatar, as you read this, is doing exactly that.
Zeidan has come back from a hiatus to participate in the Qatar International Rally and intends to do the entire FIA Middle East Rally Championship this season.
“I first participated in 2004 and 2005. Then I stopped before returning briefly in 2010. Ten years after I first started, I still have the passion for this sport. And I found the car and sponsorship from the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF),” she told Gulf Times.
“Now I also have support from the FIA and the women’s committee,” she said referring to the 1st Women in Motorsport Seminar in the Middle East that Doha hosted earlier this week.
One of the speakers at the seminar was Mouton, dubbed as ‘Superwoman’ by Formula One legend Niki Lauda. The 62-year-old was the last woman to participate in the top-level of rallying; she won three rallies in 1982 and finished a close second in that year’s championship standings behind German Walter Rohrl.
“I told Michele that she is my role model,” Zeidan said. “I asked her about her experience and how she came into rallying, and she gave me some advice about continuing in the sport. Everyone knows about what she did and how many times she participated and her wins.”
Just like the country’s other sporting icon Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah, who has represented Qatar in motorsport and in shooting, Zeidan dabbles in two sports – rallying and archery. Zeidan even represented Qatar at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, and also in the 2006 Asian Games in Doha.
It was around this time when she suffered a shoulder injury. “During the preparation for Asian Games, I had this injury in my shoulder. This made me stop rallying as well. To control the car, you need to have a strong shoulder,” she said.
Zeidan, who said that her injured shoulder is much better now, has been in nursing for 15 years and has worked with Hamad Hospital and Aspetar. She now is moving into broadcasting. “I started working as a nurse when I was 18 years old. I think this is the right time to leave. I worked for Hamad hospital and then for Aspetar. With my experience in nursing and sport, I was able to dedicate myself in my role as an athlete relations manager. I understand the athlete, I understand their injuries. I was the link between the athlete and the doctor, between the athlete and his federation and the club. I also understand his psychological side,” she said.
Zeidan, who was born in Lebanon before she moved to Qatar at the age of four, realises that she is also a role model in the region as a sportswoman.
“This is the time when GCC needs a role model. I want to encourage women to do what they would like to do. I broke the barrier in 2004 but the ladies still need someone to guide them on the right way, to support them,” she said.
Though, with a child-like excitement, she added:“It’s not just about being a woman. I really want to do something. I wish I can do something.
“My aim in this rally is to remember the time and the feeling of the desert and racing,” she said.
Asked about how she thinks she will fare at the Qatar International Rally, she said, “In my first rally, without any experience, I finished seventh. This rally I don’t know. I don’t want to say anything. I don’t know the level of other drivers. Earlier, they wanted to win and most of them ended up breaking their car. And I finished seventh. This time I don’t know their strategy for this rally. I will just drive and I will see how this goes.”