As we’ve come to the end of dakarrally 2026, we’re taking a look at the career of the first and as yet only woman to win the infamous rally, Jutta Kleinschmidt 🙌 Although now an icon of German motorsport, she didn’t start racing at an early age, despite a love of the extreme as she participated in winter sports. Jutta earned a degree in General Physics from the Isny University of Applied Sciences and went on to work at BMW as a development engineer. It was during her six years at the manufacturer that her interest in motorsport grew, and she gave up her job to become a full time racer 🏎️ She raced her first Paris-Dakar Rally in 1988 on a BMW motorcycle which finished in a retirement. Despite not finishing the demanding event, it fuelled her ambition to return and conquer the rally. She raced in the bikes again the following year, finishing in 23rd. Jutta switched to cars in 1995 and finished her first rally on four wheels in 12th. Only two years later she became the first woman t...