Women's Forum Global Meeting 2022

MA

Mashael Alobaidan

Mashael Racing

Professional Rally Driver

Description

Mashael Al-Obaidan holds a master’s in system engineering and a passion for adventure. She is the first female to obtain a rally licence in Saudi Arabia. She got her first taste of motorsports riding dirt bikes and quads in the desert, eventually working her way to rally racing behind the wheel of a Can-Am Maverick. Mashael Al-Obaidan inherited a passion for nature and motorsport from her dad, who gave her a quad as a gift when she was still a kid to have fun on the dunes of the Saudi desert. The passion grew, and when Mashael was studying system engineering at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, she was riding a Ducati as a streetbike and a Honda to go off-road. From dune bashing in her backyard to navigating the vast Utah desert or surfing California’s golden dunes, Mashael is passionate about adventure, motorsports, and photography. She travels the world to capture the soul of people and, since last week, also to race. MAO: “I have always been interested in sports and outdoor activities. Always being next to the sea, I soon became a PADI certified advanced scuba-diver and a free-diver. The beauty of the places I was lucky to discover sparked my passion in photography as well, to best capture the moments I truly cherished. Also from a young age I began exploring the world of buggies, dirt bikes and motorcycles beginning with surfing the grand Kingdom of Saudi Arabia sand dunes all the way to Utah’s desert, and California’s golden dunes. I was able to obtain my USA Motorcycle driver’s license and also became a licensed rally racer in Saudi Arabia. To drive on this famous event in Saudi is a dream come true. I’m doing what I love and I’m receiving so much support from people who say that what I am doing is inspiring a lot of people. I soon realised that I was unlocking doors and breaking down barriers with my achievements. We are paving the way for females to understand the journey we are taking and to join us. The sport is really booming here.”
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