Reema Juffali is a woman who certainly knows how to make her dreams come true! As a young girl, she was fascinated by fast cars and she grew up watching Formula One.
Today, she has become the first woman racer from Saudi Arabia to compete in her own country.
From Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, 27-year-old Reema created history by becoming the first woman from Saudi Arabia to drive competitively in the kingdom, which is known to be patriarchal and very conservative.
It was only in June last year that a ban on woman motorists was overturned by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s wide-ranging liberalisation drive.
Educated in the United States, Reema raced at the Diriyah Circuit, close to the capital Riyadh, as the VIP driver in the Jaguar I-PACE e-TROPHY on 22nd November. The Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY series is the official support race the SAUDIA Diriyah E-Prix the opening doubleheader for the ABB FIA Formula E Championship.
Ahead of the race, she said, “I am very excited, I never thought this day would come, or at least I didn’t know when and it came a lot sooner than expected. I’m a year into racing and here I am now about to race at home which is an incredible feeling.”
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, the Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Sports Authority, called this a “watershed” moment for the Kingdom.
“Reema will have thousands cheering her on, as a professional racing driver,” the prince told AFP.
“Many (people) are surprised by all the changes happening in Saudi. Seeing me in a car, racing, for a lot of people it’s a surprise, but I am happy to surprise people,” Reema said.
And we certainly agree! It is women like Reema that are true feminists and that inspire other women. What do you think
