Horses and Cars Race on the Same Track

İzmir Park Ülkü Race Track hosted a colourful and unusual event last weekend. On 8 March, International Women's Day, women from various provinces across Turkey gathered at İzmir Park Ülkü Race Track and rolled up their sleeves to prove they could outdo men in many areas of the sporting tournaments they entered. At the event, held under the slogan "From past to present, if a woman wishes, she can achieve anything", mounted archers and racing cars ran on the same track, producing some striking sights.

The event began with a photo call in front of a banner reading "Women Are Sacred", attended by AK Party İzmir MP Nesrin Ulema and Bornova District Governor Dr. Kadri Canan.

The female competitors in the motorsport category won the admiration of spectators on a track they were driving for the first time, following the "Racing School" training they received from Turkish champion driver Ümit Ülkü. Racing against the clock in groups of two, the aspiring drivers improved on the times they had set during training, and posted better times than the male drivers.

Starting with an opening shot from İzmir MP Nesrin Ulema, the female archers competing in Traditional Turkish Archery treated spectators to breathtaking displays in traditional battle dress. Galloping on horseback with arrows and bows that are exact reproductions of historic Turkish weapons, the archers hit their targets dead on.

All the women who took part in the tournament were presented with "winner of the day" medals and plaques. At the end of the tournaments, the women who finished on the podium received cups and medals as well as various gifts. Ümit Ülkü, instructor at Ümit Ülkü Academy and Team Principal of Ülkü Motorsport, said of the event: "All our women were already winners for us today, and every day. That is why we wanted to give a 'winner of the day' award to every woman here today. I congratulate them for showing us once again the strength and presence of women, which we perhaps sometimes forget."