Ahlin-Kottulinsky, Seel win inaugural Saudi women’s rally raid

Rally Jameel, the first all-women’s rally raid in Saudi Arabia, was held over the weekend with a three-leg battle from Hail to Riyadh. By the end, the #21 Sweden Challenge duo of Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky and Annie Seel were triumphant. The all-Swedish duo accumulated 2,166.590 points, over nine more than runner-up Atefa Saleh and Eleanor Coker of Galaxy.

Unlike other rally raids that are dependent on speed and time, Rally Jameel uses a points system that rewards teams based on their navigation skills. Sharing a Toyota RAV4, Åhlin-Kottulinsky and Seel racked up the most points in the first leg but was deducted twelve points due to penalties that sank them to third with a score of 544.552, trailing decorated Saudi off-roader Dania Akeel and Susana Hernando‘s 549.984 but still the best of the five AW4 class teams.

Sweden Challenge took the lead in the second leg with a performance that totalled 856.545 points, giving them the edge over a trio of American teams led by the #27 of Rosamond Dana and Susanne Saxten. Leg #3 saw the U.S.-based Team Wild Grace of Lyn Woodward and Sedona Blinson lead the overall with 771.882 points, while Sweden Challenge ranked tenth with 763.476; despite the drop, the #21 still topped AW4 by thirty-one points.

By the end, Sweden Challenge’s 2,166.590 points topped the leaderboard while Galaxy finished second with 2,157.263. Rounding out the podium with 2,155.246 points was the Toyota Prado of Saudi driver Maha Al Hamly and Pochola Hernández.

Åhlin-Kottulinsky headlined the field of sixty-eight drivers as the current Extreme E Championship leader, where she is incidentally also paired up with a fellow Swede in Johan Kristoffersson at defending champion Rosberg X Racing. She posted on Instagram, “First ever female rally in Saudi Arabia – and we got P1! We are of course really happy, but the main thing about this rally is the spirit it had, promoting female drivers, each one of us supporting each other throughout the event, and inspiring the young generation, or actually all generations that if you wanna become a female racer – you can!

“It’s been a pleasure sharing the car with Annie, I’ve learned so much from all her experience of navigation in the desert and how to tackle its obstacles […] And also for those average speed zones, Annie killed it / it’s not as easy to manage to keep average of 38/43/49 km/h as you may think!!”

Seel has raced in the Dakar Rally since 2002 with extensive experience in motorbikes before switching to four-wheel vehicles in 2014. She was the highest-finishing female rider in the Bikes category at the 2010 race.

“It feels fantastic to be one of the participants in this historic rally for women in a country where four years ago it was forbidden for us women to drive,” read a post from Seel (in Swedish, roughly translated into English). “Now, on the other hand, a lot is being invested in order for women to have a greater place in society. The team that came second was, for example, sponsored by the first university that is open to women and men. It’s a big change in the whole of Saudi society, of which Rally Jameel is a part.

“This rally was tougher than I thought. There was strong opposition from several teams. The Saudi reigning world champion in rally raid was present. Some American teams had experience of just navigation rally. Even an impressive number of beginners were really good.”

Of the sixty-eight drivers in the grid, forty-two were Saudi. Eighteen of the thirty-four teams fielded all-Saudi lineups, with the highest finisher being Phoenix‘s Fatimah Albloushi and Rawa Al Tuhami in twelfth overall and winning the PT8 category.

Saleh and Coker won the PT6 division by 3.306 points. In the AW8 class, the #5 Pteromin-Nissan Patrol of Nour Hakim and Alaa Bakhsh (twenty-ninth overall) won with 1,631.102 points to the #12 SHERO of Elham Alfahad and Saja Kamal‘s 1,591.545. Lujain Alsharif and Sultanah Alawishir (thirty-second) recorded 1,214.155 as the only team in PR, and the same was the case in AW6 for Abeer Al Saud and Nawal Almougadry (thirty-third, 755.476).

Race results

Finish	Number	Driver	NAT	Co-Driver	NAT	Team	Vehicle	Class	Total Score
1	21	Annie Seel	SWE	Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky	SWE	Sweden Challenge	Toyota RAV4	AW4	2,166.590
2	13	Atefa Saleh	UAE	Eleanor Coker	USA	Galaxy	Toyota Prado	PT6	2,157.263
3	9	Maha Al Hamly	KSA	Pochola Hernández	ESP	Min Ard Alsahraa	Toyota Prado	PT4	2,155.246
4	29	Ewelina Chlebowska	POL	Hanna Riehle	GER	Hanna Riehle	Toyota FJ Cruizer	PT6	2,153.957
5	25	Lyn Woodward	USA	Sedona Blinson	USA	Team Wild Grace	Toyota Fortuner	PT4	2,151.947
6	22	Emme Hall	USA	Rebecca Donaghe	USA	Haal Donaghe	Toyota Fortuner	PT4	2,147.855
7	6	Yara Shalaby	EGY	Maud Botros	EGY	Gazelle Rally Team	Toyota Prado	PT6	2,140.425
8	27	Rosamond Dana Saxten	USA	Susanne Saxten	USA	Rosamond Dana Saxten	Toyota Prado	PT6	2,137.910
9	34	Sanaa Al Shekaili	OMA	Halima Al Balushi	OMA	Oman Automobile Association	Toyota Fortuner	PT4	2,110.713
10	10	Dania Akeel	KSA	Susana Hernando	ESP	Dania Akeel	Toyota Land Cruiser GR	PT6	2,109.035
11	31	Manar Alesayi	KSA	Lauren Bradley	GBR	Ibex	Jeep Wrangler	PT6	2,100.179
12	17	Fatimah Albloushi	KSA	Rawa AlTuhami	KSA	Phoenix	Toyota Land Cruiser	PT6	2,086.782
13	18	Iole De Simone	ITA	Faridah Albishi	KSA	SHERO	Ford Bronco V6	PT6	2,053.223
14	19	Ebtihal AlFahad	KSA	Hanan Sobati	ALG	SHERO	Toyota Prado	PT4	2,051.426
15	26	Mona Munshi	KSA	Rawan Abdullah	KSA	Arabian Leopard	Jeep Wrangler	PT6	2,041.649
16	30	Fawziah Bakhashab	KSA	Noor Bakhashab	KSA	Bakhashab Sisters	Isuzu MUX	PT4	2,027.325
17	11	Nada Hamzah	KSA	Zain Said	KSA	Nadzai	Dodge RAM	PT6	2,012.887
18	33	Ferdos Quasim	KSA	Sara Alnaseer	KSA	Spark	Toyota Fortuner	PT4	1,985.328
19	32	Ania Arcaini	ITA	Izabella Rekiel	AUS	AAIR	Land Rover Defender	PT6	1,984.856
20	20	Noela Benitez Rios	ESP	Carla Rauvidal	ESP	WILO	Toyota Land Cruiser	PT4	1,938.418
21	4	Fatma Banaz	KSA	Mayada Bawan	KSA	Desert Healers	Jeep Wrangler	PT6	1,936.147
22	15	Afnan Albediny	KSA	Fatmah Al Shamri	KSA	The Dream	Toyota RAV4	AW4	1,902.142
23	3	Haya Alsharif	KSA	Rozana Mouawad	KSA	Kashmaa	Lexus LX	PT8	1,831.456
24	8	Samar Rahbini	KSA	Wlaa Rahbini	KSA	Brave1	MG RX8	AW4	1,812.747
25	28	Merryhan Albaz	KSA	Farah Alyousuf	KSA	Saudi Passion	Mitsubishi L200	PT4	1,809.145
26	16	Marwa Khir Aldin	SYR	Naseem Binshihoun	KSA	SUMOUU Team	Jeep Compass	AW4	1,789.675
27	1	Nujood Zahid	KSA	Dalya Islam	KSA	Urban Bedouin	Lexus LX 570 S	PT8	1,733.867
28	7	Nada Hambazaza	KSA	Enas Hamzah	KSA	The Advisor	Hummer	PT6	1,709.331
29	5	Nour Hakim	KSA	Alaa Bakhsh	KSA	Petromin-Nissan	Nissan Patrol	AW8	1,631.102
30	12	Elham Alfahad	KSA	Saja Kamal	KSA	SHERO	Jeep Grand Cherokee	AW8	1,591.545
31	24	Amal Serafi	KSA	Amsaa Serafi	KSA	Brave2	Baic	PT4	1,348.576
32	35	Lujain Alsharif	KSA	Sultanah Alawishir	KSA	Hima Foq Alqima	Toyota Prado	PR	1,214.155
33	23	Abeer Al Saud	KSA	Nawal Almougadry	KSA	Eclectic Ride	Porsche Cayenna	AW6	744.476
34	2	Jalah Al Ghalib	KSA	Tahani Aljohanni	KSA	JT	Porsche Macan	AW4	–773.988