Sarah Bovy (IRON DAMES): Race to inspire !

Sarah Bovy made history in November with her “Iron Dames” teammates, Michelle Gatting and Rahel Frey by winning the 8 hours of Bahrain. After claiming the pole position, they became the first female team to win an FIA World Endurance Championship race and became vice world champions, therefore setting new standards in motorsport. Interview.

Can you tell the Iron Dames story in a few words?

This team was founded by Deborah Mayer. Her vision is to support women in sports where they can compete directly with men: motorsports, horse-riding... I joined the team in 2021 and we made steady progress until our pole position and victory in Bahrain. It means a lot to us and motorsport history. We have seen that our competitivity is appreciated by the community and the sport in general. Our team - which also includes Doriane Pin and Natalia Granada - gives us the opportunity to show how women can be empowered and how they can achieve great things, whatever the industry, whatever the sport. We will keep pushing for 2024.

"Like Business, the world of Motor Sport is very challenging."

How was the race in Bahrain?

We had the pole position, and I was in the car to start the race. I managed to safely negotiate a chaotic first part between Hypercars and LMP2s in the opening corners and during the early part of the 8-hour race, we were in second place. Our Porsche #85 took the lead when #60 had to retire. After that, Rahel resisted the #98 Northwest AMR which later had to serve a penalty. Michelle took over the wheel for the final two hours of the race and held a comfortable advantage. She managed to cross the line with a 5.5 second lead. With this victory, the IRON Dames will go down in the history books as the first ever women-only GTE team winning in sportscar racing’s pinnacle championship.

What can business people learn from a professional driver like yourself?

Like Business, the world of Motor Sport is very challenging. It takes perseverance! My objectives are of course aimed at making the best results on the track, but I also enjoy sharing my passion and helping business people improve their own performance, in a car or in their offices. Clear communication and sharp decision-making are key for example. In Bahrain, our tire management made a big difference. My career has always been built around trusted relationships. One example is my long term partnership with INTENSUM, a human-sized European SAP Consulting company specialising in Finance, Intelligence & Innovation. I’m happy that the company’s main Partners Laurent De Buyser and Michael Diet have trusted me since 2016 and I am glad that the Iron Dames team allowed me to keep the INTENSUM logo on my outfit now that we get so much media coverage!