The trailblazing women of the Dakar Rally

The infamous Dakar race (formerly known as Paris-Dakar) is a gruelling off-road endurance rally. Since its inception in 1978, there has only been one overall female winner. Ella Al-Shamahi meets two women who took part in this year’s event.

Aliyyah Koloc is the youngest driver to take part in the race. She’s a 19-year-old professional race driver born in Dubai, raised by a Czech father and a mother from the Seychelles. She grew up with motorsports as her father, Martin Koloc, was a well-known racing driver in the 90s and two-times European Truck Racing Champion. After a first successful career in tennis, Aliyyah switched to motorsports only four years ago.

Motocyclist and rally driver Annie Seel from Sweden is a legend in the motorsports world. She’s been the female Dakar champion for both the motorbike and car categories, and this year was her 11th time taking part. She was also the first woman to set a record climbing Mount Everest on a motorbike and is an advocate for women in motorsports.

Produced by Emily Naylor

(Image: (L) Aliyyah Koloc, credit Buggyra ZM Racing. (R) Annie Seel, credit MCH Photography/X-raid.)