As a Saudi woman at the wheel in the Dakar rally, Dania Akeel steers careful course
- Akeel is one of two Saudi women competing in 2023 race and one of only 31 women among 790 competitors
- But she is vulnerable to accusations she is part of a ‘sportswashing’ campaign, a strategy of using sports as a distraction from human rights controversies
As Dania Akeel drives her lightweight vehicle through the Saudi desert in the Dakar Rally, she is aware she has to steer a careful course across her home sands.
Akeel is one of two Saudi women competing in the 2023 race and one of only 31 women among 790 competitors.
She represents a visible change in the ultraconservative kingdom where women have only been allowed to drive since 2018, but, sponsored by the Saudi Ministry of Sport, the country’s motor sports federation and a leading Saudi car showroom, she is vulnerable to accusations she is part of a ‘sportswashing’ campaign.
“I’ll go and do my best and at the end of the day your drive is between you and yourself,” Akeel said.
“One wants to do well of course, but to do so you just have to focus on the drive.
“Motorsport is not segregated by gender, so I think that the best way to empower women is to drive your best and to be competitive,” she added.
