Motorcyclist Sarah Kashyap claims first position in SJOBA rally under Ladies Moto

New Delhi, 17th April, 2018: India’s pioneer in women’s motorsport, Sarah Kashyap has claimed 1st position under ladies moto in the recently concluded SJOBA Rally. Sarah’s win comes after she recently outshined in the Desert Storm Rally claiming 8th position overall.

Battling extreme challenges in the Sub-Himalayan rally which witnessed over 45 cars and 26 motorcyclists, Sarah rode a KTM EXC 250 to claim her victory. Overall Sarah stood at 11th position. The 3 day long rally covered Chandigarh-Shimla-Chandigarh via the backroads and crossed places like Kangar, Dilman, Sultanpur, Chail etc. The rally witnessed extreme challenges in the hills as competitors had to not only battle the weather conditions, but also the tough terrains with rocks, gravel, sand thrown in on tight narrow corners.

Sarah was competing against the likes of last year’s winner Gurjinder Malwa, Mohit Thakur, Vishwas SD and Rupinder Singh among others.

The rally also witnessed other women bikers this year for the first time. Suzanne Bull from Switzerland who claimed the 3rd position in Group D Indian Stock Bikes in her first attempt at the rally, showed a gripping performance. Anita Krishnan from Delhi was also one of the participants riding her Royal Enfield Thunderbird.

The 32 year old biker is the only woman biker to have finished all major cross country rallies in India. She was the first to finish Raid-de-Himalaya in 2015 and also became the first ever to finish Desert Storm in 2017, 2018 and now SJOBA rally in 2018. Recognizing Sarah’s achievements, recently FMSCI- the governing body for motor sports in India has considered honoring her with the "outstanding woman in motorsport" award next year.

Speaking on the occasion, Sarah Kashyap, said, “I am excited to finish the race with such great results. Each rally is giving me confidence and helping me get closer to my ultimate dream of participating in the Dakar Rally in 2020. Motor Sport in India is considered to be a male dominated sport, it feels nice when you compete with the who’s who of the sport and outshine. I would like to thank my mentor, coach and my family members for helping me reach my goals.”