Susie Wolff joins F1 team Williams as developmental driver

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Congratulations to Susie Wolff, just appointed as a developmental driver for F1 team Williams.

She’s been karting since she was a child, and since 2006 (under her maiden name of Susie Stoddart) has been competing in DTM, the German touring car championship.

She’s been quoted by Autosport as saying: “Formula 1 is the ultimate challenge for any racing driver and it offers me the chance both to apply and to improve the skills I have developed racing in DTM. In return I shall be offering some of my own technical insight and experience – coming from a different discipline – and helping the team engage with its partners.

“I hope also to demonstrate that women can play a role at the highest levels of motorsport and I shall be working closely with the team on its social responsibility programme in the areas of education and road safety.

No congratulations at all to the ever-tiresome F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, who welcomed Wolff to his little dominion with the words: “If Susie is as quick in a car as she looks good out of a car then she will be a massive asset to any team and on top of that she is very intelligent.” (Parse that lovely little sentence in your own time – hours of feminist fun.)

Picture from Wikimedia, user AngMoKio