Toyota enters staff
In a rustic the place girls have been solely granted the authorized proper to drive seven years in the past, Saudi Arabia hosted the fourth version of Rally Jameel, a navigation-based off-road rally solely for feminine drivers.
Held from April 21-26, 2025, the occasion attracted 82 contributors from 37 international locations, together with the first-ever staff from Japan, spotlighting Saudi Arabia’s efforts to redefine gender roles and promote motorsport as a part of its broader Imaginative and prescient 2030 agenda.
Two workers from Toyota’s Gazoo Racing (GR) division—Hanae Kitahara and Rio Nagayabu—have been amongst those that entered the 1,600-kilometre endurance occasion. Neither had earlier rally expertise, however each have been chosen to symbolize Toyota within the rally, which stretched throughout rocky and sandy terrain from Jordan into northern Saudi Arabia over 4 days.
Their participation adopted a choice by senior GR executives in Japan to deepen ties with Abdul Latif Jameel Motors, Toyota’s Saudi distributor, which has performed a distinguished position in creating the occasion. Organisers stated Rally Jameel is greater than only a race—it’s a platform designed to empower girls by skill-building, confidence and worldwide publicity.
Kitahara and Nagayabu, a part of the GR Motorsports and Advertising and marketing divisions, respectively, educated with an in-house skilled who beforehand labored on creating the Land Cruiser GR Sport—the mannequin they drove within the competitors. Their inclusion was seen internally as each an expert growth alternative and a gesture of worldwide solidarity with the occasion’s targets.
Distinct rally
The 2025 version of Rally Jameel was distinct from standard motorsport occasions. Velocity was not the first issue—as an alternative, the rally was primarily based on navigation and teamwork. Drivers and co-drivers relied on a GPS system and a roadbook to search out their option to designated checkpoints. The format allowed contributors to change roles freely in the course of the race.
The occasion’s construction, which was supposed to be accessible to newcomers, attracted a variety of contributors, from moms and daughters to skilled rally drivers. A Saudi lady who entered the race along with her daughter described it as a symbolic option to have fun Mom’s Day 2025 and embrace the brand new freedoms granted to girls in Saudi Arabia for the reason that driving ban was lifted in 2018.
In 2017, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman issued a royal decree ending the prohibition on feminine drivers, following many years of restrictions. The transfer aligned with the financial diversification targets beneath Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Imaginative and prescient 2030, which goals to cut back the nation’s dependence on oil and improve girls’s participation within the workforce and public life.
Based on World Financial institution information, feminine labour pressure participation in Saudi Arabia has almost doubled over the previous 5 years, rising from 17.7% in 2016 to 33.6% by 2023.
Social shift
Rally Jameel has develop into one of many extra seen manifestations of this social shift in Saudi Arabia. The occasion was backed by Abdul Latif Jameel Motors, which works carefully with the Saudi authorities to offer automobiles and assist for driving colleges catering to girls.
Hassan Jameel, Vice Chairman of Abdul Latif Jameel, stated the occasion was created to encourage management and independence amongst girls. Contributors have been anticipated to deal with automobile upkeep, navigation and teamwork with out exterior help, which, in line with organisers, mirrors the real-life problem-solving and confidence-building that the initiative is designed to advertise.
The occasion additionally attracted worldwide curiosity, with entries from Bahrain, Eire, Spain and different international locations. Whereas some contributors have been seasoned in motorsport, many others have been amateurs with no prior racing background. One Bahraini competitor stated she was excited to deal with off-road challenges within the desert alongside one of many few feminine rally drivers from her nation.
Germany’s Hanna Riehle, a daily competitor, secured her third consecutive victory on this 12 months’s version. She stated the enchantment of the rally lies in its give attention to exploration fairly than velocity. “You get to expertise surroundings and locations you wouldn’t usually see,” she famous.
Curated format
Organisers deliberately included components to cut back strain on contributors. Munir Khoja, head of promoting communications at Abdul Latif Jameel Motors, stated the rally was designed to permit contributors to benefit from the journey. Groups have been inspired to take breaks, take pictures and work together with fellow rivals with out worry of dropping time.
This 12 months’s rally handed by a number of heritage websites in Saudi Arabia and Jordan, together with desert landscapes which are troublesome to entry exterior such organised occasions. The route was created to mirror each the cultural and geographic range of the area, with organisers pointing to the rally’s potential to advertise journey tourism—one other focus beneath Imaginative and prescient 2030.
Though nonetheless in its early years, Rally Jameel is gaining recognition past Saudi borders. Its distinctive format, worldwide attain and alignment with broader societal reforms make it a notable case research within the area’s evolving strategy to gender, sport and identification.
Because the occasion continues to develop, questions stay about how far motorsport—and by extension, broader leisure sectors—can advance feminine inclusion throughout the Center East. However for now, organisers see Rally Jameel as a step in that path, mixing sport, tourism and social change right into a single, high-profile initiative.
The following version of Rally Jameel is anticipated to construct on the momentum of this 12 months’s occasion, with plans to additional develop worldwide participation and sponsorship, in line with sources conversant in the rally’s growth. Whether or not extra automotive producers or racing our bodies will ship groups stays to be seen. Nonetheless, the entry of Toyota’s Japanese staff could sign rising business curiosity within the area’s rising motorsport panorama.
Hero picture: (L-R) Hanae Kitahara and Rio Nagayabu from Toyota’s Gazoo Racing (GR) division raced within the Rally Jameel for the primary time. Credit score: Toyota
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