Multinational automobile manufacturer Renault get to have an exposure against their Formula One rivals on Sunday when they gave an opportunity to a Saudi Arabian woman a chance to mark the end of ban by driving one of their cars.
On the same day, Saudi women drivers took to the roads legally for the first time in the kingdom's history, as the ban on women driving finally lifted. According to the senior Ministry of Interior and Traffic Directorate official, more than 120,000 women applied for a driver's license on Sunday.
"Demand for obtaining driving licenses is very high," said Maj. Gen. Mansour Al Turki, official spokesman of the Ministry of Interior.
And on that every special day, Aseel Al-Hamad, the first female member of her national motorsport federation took the same car in which Kimi Raikkonen won the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
"I have loved racing and motorsport from a very young age and to drive a Formula One car goes even beyond my dreams and what I thought was possible. It is a genuine honor to drive in front of the crowds at the team's home race in France. I hope doing so on the day when women can drive on the roads in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shows what you can do if you have the passion and the spirit to dream," she said.
Aseel is a member of the FIA Women in Motorsport Commission who is responsible for creating strategies in promoting education and training of women in motorsport in Saudi Arabia.
