Off the wire
• Roundup: Israel's Netanyahu seeks to court far-right lawmaker in bid to enlarge ruling coalition  • Common antimicrobial agent disrupts gut bacteria  • Canadian gov't makes formal apology for Komagata Maru incident  • Russia, Thailand agree to further cooperation in military, food  • Roundup: New Finnish company set up to revive Nokia mobile phone brand  • U.S. to double overtime payment  • Germany's Kuka confirms China's Midea Group bid for more shares  • UN chief appoints new climate chief  • EU, Central Asia countries hold dialogue on political, security issues  • Medina leads Brazilian rally at Rio Pro  
You are here: 　 Home

Argentinian woman, Ballario, makes history in man's sport

Xinhua, May 19, 2016 Adjust font size:

Julia Ballario, 24, made history at the weekend upon becoming the first Argentinian female to win a Top Race Series car racing competition, a sport dominated by men.

The young woman, born in the city of Marcos Juarez in the province of Cordoba, 437 kilometres north of Buenos Aires, won on Sunday in the Top Series Race, the second division in the Top Race speed category.

"Before they (the other drivers) saw me as a little girl but now I have made a space for myself in car racing," Ballario told journalists after her victory in the city of Resistencia, provincial capital of Chaco in northern Argentina.

The 24-year-old first got behind the wheel of a racing car at only seven-years-old when she went karting in Marcos Juarez's autodrome for the first time.

"I was scared when I got out (of the kart) and I didn't ask to go karting for six months but when I got behind the wheel again I never looked back," Ballario told local daily Clarin.

When asked about the mach prejudices surrounding the sport, the racing driver said that some of them looked at her as if to say "'what is that girl doing here?' But nobody ever said anything weird to me."

Ballario, who in 2014 competed in the divisional Pro Mazda in the United States, was always supported by her father but not so much by her mother who did not approve of the competitions.

The racing driver graduated in graphic design in the city of Rosario, Santa Fe province, where she took classes during the week so as to be able to travel and compete at weekends.

"I always made time for studying and the practical tasks. I had professors that asked me about the races and they helped me with the deadlines. However there were others that hated the races," said Ballario.

Ballario, who competes with Mercedes Benz number 92, joined the category in 2015 and has achieved three podium finishes, one pole position and one victory out of 19 races.

The first woman to win a car racing competition in Argentina was Ianina Zanazzi in 1999 at 17-years-old, however it was in a single-seater car. Zanazzi won the final of the Argentinian Formula Super Renault, in Rio Cuarto, Cordoba. Endit