F1 and IndyCar followers might recognise a well-recognized face competing in Milan this month.
The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina are underneath manner (Picture: Getty)
A former IndyCar racer and System 1 take a look at driver has achieved her dream of qualifying for the Winter Olympics after a whole change of profession. Simona de Silvestro has spent a few years competing on tarmac circuits however, lately, has been extra acquainted with ice following her choice to alter sporting disciplines.
She is a pioneer in feminine motorsport, having pushed 71 instances in IndyCar and are available very near touchdown an F1 race seat. De Silvestro was a take a look at driver for Sauber in 2014, driving an F1 automobile in a personal take a look at and was thought of a powerful candidate for a spot on the 2015 grid, earlier than the chance vanished when she and the Swiss staff parted methods.
The Swiss-Italian racer switched to System E and later headed Down Underneath to drive within the Australian Supercars sequence. Nevertheless it was in 2021 that she determined to make a change and tried to pursue a path to the highest of one other sport, selecting to focus all her efforts in bobsleigh with a view to qualifying for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
And she or he achieved that objective, confirming on social media that she’s going to signify the house nation in Milano-Cortina this month. De Silvestro wrote: “We formally made it. We will the Olympic Video games. Proof that a bit of loopy, combined with perception, could make the unattainable actual. It began with a dream that I wasn’t scared to chase! I can not wait to signify Italy in Milano Cortina 2026.”
In a 2024 interview, De Silvestro defined the rationale behind her choice to depart aggressive motorsport behind. She stated: “I believe all of it comes all the way down to the truth that I simply love sport. Once I was a child, I used to look at the Olympics and I all the time felt impressed by the Video games. And to have the ability to do that after in my lifetime can be superb.
“So, sooner or later I began going via all of the Olympic sports activities to see which of them I might realistically participate in. That is how I got here to bobsleigh, as a result of I really feel it is the closest factor to driving a race automobile.
“Three years in the past, I lastly determined to go for it one hundred pc. I managed to discover a manner in, after loads of awkward cellphone calls. Now I am a part of the Italian nationwide staff, making an attempt to qualify for the Olympic Video games. It is a exhausting dream to attain for certain, however I believe it is fairly uplifting when you’ve gotten one thing utterly new to attempt for. To this point, it has been a enjoyable however difficult journey.
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“In motorsport, you’ve gotten the race that’s unfolding and it is fairly lengthy. A variety of issues are taking place on the monitor. However in bobsleigh, all of it comes down to a couple quick minutes, and getting all the things out of that first push. In the event you make one tiny mistake, it might probably damage fairly badly. In a single sense, with the velocity, it is comparable, however the way in which you strategy bobsleigh in comparison with automobile racing is manner completely different.”
The 37-year-old hasn’t utterly given up on competing in motorsport once more, although. Having taken half in a particular all-female System E take a look at in 2024, she confirmed: “I might love to do the Indy 500 once more. I nonetheless have large objectives.”
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