Female stewards make WRC history
An all-female panel of stewards will officiate at a round of the FIA World Rally Championship this weekend for the first time in the sport's 44-year history.
Germany’s Waltraud Wűnsch chairs the three-strong team of stewards at RallyRACC Catalunya - Rally de España and is accompanied by sporting director and clerk of the course for Rally Sweden, Christina Lundqvist Viklund, and FIA Women in Motorsport commission ambassador, Silvia Bellot.
Bellot - who is the only female Formula One steward - has been nominated by the Reial Automobil Club de Catalunya (RACC) as the national steward for the seventh year. The stewards are also supported by long-time WRC secretary, Yvonne Gilli.
In total, 15 senior officials at the championship's Spanish counter are women.
“It’s good to see this finally happening and it should be viewed as normal,” said Wűnsch. “We need to keep encouraging more women to step into senior official roles, not just stewarding"
"As we can see from Rally de España, women are represented in many different aspects of the rally that are vital to its smooth-running. Everyone has a role to play and can be part of motor sport, male or female, it doesn’t matter.”
