Susann Hansen – the
first woman ever to win a European Rallycross Championship title and now Team
Manager of the ultra-successful family-run outfit of the same name – hopes the burgeoning
female revolution within the sport is one that is set to continue.
In 1994, Hansen made history when
she clinched ERA 1400 Cup honours for Group N cars up to 1,400cc. Almost 30 years
on, she is a central figure on the FIA World Rallycross Championship scene, having
played a key role in guiding Hansen Motorsport to three Teams’ trophies and one
Drivers’ crown over the past decade alongside husband and Team Principal, Kenneth
Hansen.
If Susann is one of the most
prominent female faces in the World RX paddock, she is far from the only one. Countrywoman
Klara Andersson has established herself over the past season-and-a-half as a
consistent contender in World RX – staking her own claim to a place in the
record books last year as the first woman ever to finish on the podium in top
flight international rallycross.
Andersson might be the current
trailblazer, but others are following in her wheeltracks. Over the past two years,
no fewer than six fellow female racers have tested their mettle in the supporting
FIA RX2e Championship, in the shape of Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky, Cristina Gutiérrez,
Catie Munnings, Laia Sanz, Molly Taylor and Yan Zhang.
Gutiérrez advanced to the final on
her debut, while Åhlin-Kottulinsky starred throughout the 2023 campaign, twice
reaching the rostrum in the single-spec series and going into the season finale
as one of just three drivers still in the mix to lift the laurels.
In Euro RX1, Mandie August finished
a career-high fourth in Norway this year, while outside of the cockpit, there
are an increasing number of women in vital positions, from RX2e Project Manager
Janina González to CE Dealer Team by Volvo Construction Equipment mechanic Anna
Palander, popular and knowledgeable paddock reporter Molly Pettit and Chairperson
of the Stewards, Cheryl Lynch.
Behind-the-scenes, experienced World
RX Event Manager Julie O’Leary plays an essential role in ensuring the smooth
running of race weekends, Karin Bock-Leitert is in charge of the broadcast product
and Dr. Anna Carreras is always on-hand as FIA Medical Delegate. As General Manager of Nyirád Racing Center, meanwhile, Orsolya Gyuris is responsible for staging
World RX of Hungary, supported by a female-heavy management team and all-female
start-line marshal crew.
While still a comparatively small number
in what has traditionally been a male-dominated sport, more significantly, it
is a growing number, and Hansen hopes the trend of greater female participation
in rallycross is just the start.
“I would love to see more women here,” she
enthused. “We need more diversity. A lot of the time, I don’t know if women even
see that there is an opportunity, but there definitely is.
“In my case, I don’t think I ever thought this couldn’t
be for me. Maybe it came from my upbringing, from my grandmother. She was
alone with three children and there was nothing that she felt she couldn’t do
because it was a ‘man’s job’ – she did it all. Maybe I didn’t realise that I
shouldn’t do something because I was a woman.
“I think men and women need to change how we
see ourselves and our values, and that has to come from within. There is always
room for good people and my advice would be, just do it. Even if it looks like
a closed world, I can assure you it isn’t. I’m waiting here on the other side
for all the other women to join me!”
Focussed firmly on the future, Susann
is now the driving force behind Hansen Motorsport’s long-term environmental and
sustainability strategy, with the Swedish squad setting the pace as the first
team in rallycross to achieve FIA 3* Environmental Accreditation two years ago.
“We have a dream and a vision, and I would like
rallycross to be the most sustainable world championship around,” she explained.
“That’s where my heart lies. Rallycross is still a comparatively young form of
motorsport, so we have some freedom to be efficient, flexible and open-minded.
“Sustainability is about how we survive in the
long-term, and for me, that is what we want to do with rallycross. We want to
be here forever, and ultimately, I hope we will be 100 per cent climate neutral.
I strongly believe that motorsport and sustainability do not have to contradict
each other – they can go hand-in-hand.
“We have been through some really tough times,
and maybe the toughest summer ever this year but we all know that this sport
has so much potential, and the desire to show that to the world is what drives
us. It’s what continues to inspire us every single day.”
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