HYDERABAD: Celebrated para athlete and Arjuna and Khel Ratna award winner Deepa Malik has been inducted into the Women In Motorsport (WIM) Commission with a view to encourage more women, particularly disabled persons, to take part in the sport.
Speaking during a meeting, Sita Raina, the first chairperson of the WIM and who represents India on the FIA WIM board, said “It's no longer about women in power, it's about women with horsepower.”
Speaking on the initiative to involve herself in promoting motorsports, Deepa Malik, who is also president of the Paralympic Committee of India, said "I wanted to join this initiative to change this perception about women and particularly about women with disabilities. I hope this initiative will encourage more and more career options for women in motorsports. There are lot of people who think that women cannot take up such career in racing or rallies and this step is aimed at changing such perceptions"
The governing body for motorsport in India, the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI), instituted the WIM commission in January 2017. The aim of this commission is to engage, empower, educate and support all women who want to compete. Be it as participants behind the wheels or behind the scenes in motorsport events, women's motorsport has grown.
Beginning at the grassroot level and moving onto the national stage and then enabling them to step up to the world stage by providing guidelines, training and licence/certification in all areas of motorsport, the WIM has been doing its job diligently.
The high for the WIM was in 2019 when bike queen Aishwariya Pissay won the first place in the women's category at the FIM (Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme) Baja World Cup and second in the juniors.
Anita Nanjapa, an eight-time national champion, Renuka Kirpalani and others were present.
