EUROPEAN WOMEN'S CUP 2005

back to the REPORT 2005 .....

REPORT 2005

Vallelunga, 15th May 2005

Good Morning Europe!

The Women's Motorcycling world woke up this morning with a dream come true: a Road Racing European Cup full of great emotions.
The riders who were racing fast like champions are women from various European Countries, united by the passion and the desire to measure themselves against each other in this first all-female European Road Racing Championship in the history of motorcycling.

Sunday, May the 15th: at the Vallelunga Circuit, under the sun shining on the Roman countryside, 24 girls brought forth a hard-fought race, lap times dropping each lap, and resulting in a great entertainment for the public that crowded the stands, as it always happens when the throttles are twisted by feminine wrists.

They're not just pretty, nice and with a strong passion: those women proved that their technical skills are rapidly growing and now - after just a year since the all-female competitions took place for the first time in Europe (Trofeo Italiano Motocicliste in Italy and the Dream Cup in France) - when they lower their helmet's visors and wear their leathers, it's really hard to tell women from men, judging on the speed and the fighting spirit of the racers.

The European Women's Cup has been projected and pushed by two women's organizations: the Italian Motorcycling Club "Motocicliste" and the French association "Women's Sport Project". Their intense and passionate work, backed and strongly supported by the Italian Motorcycling Federation, under the aegis of the UEM (the European Motorcycle Union), has been rewarded by the successful achievement that this first race represents.

Vallelunga track is both very technical and breath-taking, and it won the approval of the non-Italian racers who never had the chance to ride this circuit, but strained hard to learn it and improve, starting from the Friday free practice sessions.

But since this was their home-track, the hot favourites were still the Italians Alessia Polita (51), Letizia Marchetti (5), Samuela De Nardi (84) and Alice Betti (121): the grid's first row after the qualifying sessions.
An impressive Fabienne Migout (67) achieved the fifth place on the grid, showing her skills and determination during the whole race week-end. Right behind her the two official Ducati's Team riders, Paola Cazzola (33) and Chiara Valentini (75), with Manuela La Licata (76) and her beautiful MV Agusta among them in the second row.

At the Saturday's Riders Meeting and - better! - during the BBQ at the Organizators' Hospitality, all the girl racers had the chance to get to know each others, share experiences and tricks, listen to different stories, in different languages...communicating and smiling while letting the competition and rivarly to fall asleep to be awakened the day after during the race.

SUNDAY – WARM UP AND RACE
Sunday morning, warm up and go!

On the starting grid, every rider had a number 89 sticker somewhere on their bike, helmet or suit, dedicating this race to Gabriela Rodriguez, the Brazilian rider of the Trofeo Italiano Motocicliste, who passed away only 15 days ago from an accident during a practicing session right here in Vallelunga. All the Italians, and especially her team and cup mates, were sorrowful and deeply hurt by this loss of a protagonist of the Italian motorcycling scene, who will be remembered not only because of her riding skills (she was in fourth position in the female Championship, right before Polita): everyone will miss her liveliness and her high spirits.

Start was successful, but after one lap Monia Sireci falls down at the Esse, a bad high-side for her resulting in a broken wrist and foot fingers. Too strong emotions for Gabriela’s team mate who wanted to come back to this circuit to remember her friend and tribute her a lap after the race with a yellow/green flag around her neck.
Race was interrupted in order to rescue Sireci and clean up the track. A new start was disposed and the French rider Migout, who fell as well during the first lap, had the possibility to join the grid with her luckily undamaged R1.

Alessia Polita started very well leading the race from the first moment till the checkered flag, even if Letizia Marchetti was her tail-gater during the whole race. Letizia was outpaced by Cazzola e Migout at the start, but rapidly regained the second position overtaking both of them during the second lap.

Race was much struggled, the pretty Roman girl's R6 pressing Polita’s Suzuki Celani for all the 12 laps. This direct challenge resulted in an average lap time of 1.25 for both of them and a subsequent performance improvement with 1.24.5 for Piellemoto Villa Sandra’s rider and 1.24.9 for Polita leaving a gap of over 20 seconds from the pursuing peloton.

A good start also for Fabienne Migout who, after passing Samuela De Nardi during the first lap, mantained the third position for nearly the whole race. But the Italian with her RSV didn't give up, and lap after lap she got to decrease the distance, passed Cazzola at the sixth lap and, with an extraordinary pass at the last lap, crossed the finish line in third position, first of her class (1000cc) a few tenths before Migout.

Third and fourth positions in the same class for Paola Cazzola (Ducati 999 - Y2K Team) and Alice Betti (Yamaha R1 - Millenium team) followed by an extraordinary Lydia Jean, 37 years old, French, with a CBR600RR completely stock (she had to remove her side stand after the technical inspections!), she deserved the third position in the 600cc. Jean is also her own technician.

Italian battle involving Chiara Valentini with her Ducati 999 and Manuela La Licata’s MV Agusta, respectively fifth and sixth in the 1000cc.

A brilliant Roman, Nicoletta Romaniello (Yamaha R6), stuck out over Hungarian Petra Sovegjarto (Suzuki GSXR600) for just 2 seconds. Budapestian, eighteen years old, is the new promise in the European female motorcycling.

After the race, Letizia Marchetti rode a very touching tribute lap in honor of Gabriela Rodriguez, her last year team-mate sending kisses and raising hands to the sky while all of her friends felt united in a soul-stirring warm embrace.

The Italian National anthem played twice, first time for 20-years-old Alessia Polita (Suzuki Celani team) in the 600cc. class, and a second time for her friend Samuela De Nardi (Aprilia team) in the 1000cc. class. The podium ceremony was a great tribute to Italy - such a dynamic country in this sport - in front of many Italian Motorcycling Federation representetives.The FMI, in fact, among many projects, supports also the Female Motorcycling and it is the only federation that offered international promotional free license to its riders in this European Cup, to promote and encourage this growing sector. FMI is supporting this Cup along with the UEM-European Motorcycling Union, based on the achievements of Motorcycling Club “Motocicliste” that organized the Italian Female Cup in 2004 and 2005.

Next appointment in Rijeka, June 12th together with the races of the European Championship. We are expecting even more riders to enrich this event with their joy, passion and bravery.

51 - Alessia Polita (ITALY) - 1^ 600cc CLASS - Suzuki GSXR 600