For 76 years, the world has been mesmerised by F1, its need for speed, the on-the-edge moments, the jeopardy. 1950 for the first official world championship race, the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, which is why it is known as the home of motorsports. Over the seven-plus decades, we have seen the sport evolve and change, and, for the most part, for the better, with a high emphasis on safety and diversity. While the sport is a long way from being diverse, especially among drivers off the track, it has come a long way. But there have only been 14 women on an F1 podium in the 3,459 individual constructors' podiums in history.
The first woman to ever step on a podium was in 1986 at the British GP; it took 36 years for a woman to be presented to the world of F1, and it was none other than Virginia Williams. Yes, the clue is in the name, but she was not just Frank Williams' wife. At the time, Williams was a small, founder-led team. Nothing like the corporate operations we have today. Her role was significant; she was the person who tied it all together in a leadership capacity rather than in a technical or engineering role. Being on the podium was symbolic and an extension of the ownership of the constructors; her appearance was historically important, the first recorded instance of a woman collecting the constructors' trophy, but not yet as part of the technical workforce, and a step in the right direction. It is a “starting point marker” in F1’s gender visibility history.
It then took another 27 years to see the second woman on the podium in 2013, Gill Ganderton of Red Bull in Bahrain. She represented a shift in which women were no longer “HR” people but could be involved in the sport's technical aspects. She represented that women can be in technical engineering as head of Trackside electronics, she was responsible for ensuring the entire electronic infrastructure of a race weekend functioned correctly. Her roles involved her car telemetry systems' live performance data, garage communication networks, sensor reliability, data transmission integrity and ensuring engineers could see and act on live race data. Her role was significant: without electronics, modern F1 would not function; strategy could not be executed; cars could not be monitored; and performance could not be optimised. Her podium appearance marks the moment women began appearing for direct operational engineering responsibility tied to race performance, not symbolic representation.
The third was Kim Stevens, the first Mercedes driver, who would go on to win 50% of the female constructor podiums. She worked as a trackside aerodynamicist during the most dominant hybrid era in 2015, the time of Nico Rosberg v Lewis Hamilton. This was a turning point in the mid-2010s, when women's appearances on the podium were more frequent, if you can call it that. It was a symbol that the administration was moving to a more equal working environment, no longer based on connections but skills and grit. They were increasingly embedded within the technical core of performance itself. One of the clearest illustrations of this transition came through the work of Kim Stevens, who appeared on the podium during Mercedes’ dominant hybrid era.
Stevens worked as a trackside aerodynamicist, a role directly linked to lap-time performance. During live sessions, she analysed airflow performance across the car and compared wind-tunnel and CFD predictions with real-world data. These comparisons were critical in validating aerodynamic models and identifying discrepancies between simulation and track behaviour. Based on this information, she advised on setup adjustments that influenced drag levels, downforce balance, and aerodynamic efficiency.
This work mattered because aerodynamics is one of the most influential performance drivers in Formula 1. It determines cornering speed, affects tyre degradation over the race distance, and influences straight-line efficiency. Stevens’ presence on the podium therefore represented women entering core performance-development engineering, where decisions directly affected lap-time potential rather than supporting analysis removed from competitive consequences.
The next step in this progression came through the expanding corporate complexity of modern Formula 1 teams. At the 2016 United States Grand Prix, Victoria Vowles appeared on the podium representing Mercedes in her role as Partner Services Director.
Vowles was responsible for managing relationships with commercial partners, coordinating stakeholder engagement, and supporting organisational alignment across departments. Modern Formula 1 teams operate as corporate ecosystems. Sponsorship revenue funds car development, partnerships shape global expansion, and organisational structure influences operational efficiency. Her appearance highlighted the growing recognition that commercial and organisational leadership is not separate from competitive success, but a contributing factor to it.
By 2019, women were appearing on podiums in some of the most technically complex roles in motorsport. At the Canadian Grand Prix, Margarita Torres Díez represented Mercedes High Performance Powertrains as a trackside power unit engineer.
Her responsibilities included monitoring hybrid energy recovery systems, battery deployment and harvesting, turbocharger and combustion efficiency, and the thermal and pressure stability of the power unit. Modern Formula 1 engines are integrated energy systems. Performance depends on energy recovery efficiency, while small thermal issues can cost tenths of a second or compromise reliability entirely. Her role placed her at the intersection of mechanical, electrical, and software engineering, representing women entering the most technologically advanced hybrid systems in motorsport.
That same season, strategy emerged as another area of direct race control. At the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix, Hannah Schmitz appeared on the podium for Red Bull Racing. By this point, she was already recognised as one of the most influential strategy engineers in Formula 1.
Her role involves executing live race strategy decisions, determining pit stop timing, and reacting in real time to safety cars, weather changes, and rival strategies. Strategy is one of the few disciplines in Formula 1 that can win races without changing car performance. It can override mechanical advantages purely through decision-making. Schmitz’s presence demonstrated women operating in real-time control roles in which decisions directly determine racial outcomes.
Later in 2019, representation extended further up the organisational hierarchy. At the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Britta Seeger appeared on the podium as a senior board-level executive at Mercedes-Benz Group.
Her responsibilities include corporate governance, global human resources strategy, and long-term structural decision-making. Formula 1 performance is ultimately shaped at this level. Budgets determine development speed, infrastructure decisions affect competitiveness, and executive leadership defines team direction. Seeger’s presence represented women at the highest strategic level of Formula 1's success.
The 2020 season reinforced the technical depth of women’s roles. At the Austrian Grand Prix, Holly Chapman appeared on the podium as a trackside power unit engineer. Her work focused on monitoring engine performance, ensuring reliability of hybrid systems, and supporting optimisation of energy deployment strategies.
Mercedes’ dominance during this era relied heavily on power unit reliability, thermal management, and hybrid efficiency. Chapman’s role placed her within the engineering backbone of a championship-winning team.
Shortly afterwards, at the Styrian Grand Prix, Stephanie Travers appeared on the podium as a trackside fluid engineer. Her responsibilities included managing fuel, oil, and cooling system performance, monitoring thermal balance across power unit components, and supporting engine reliability under extreme race conditions.
Fluid engineering is essential in Formula 1. It prevents engine failure, maintains optimal temperature windows, and ensures consistent performance across a race distance. Travers became the first Black woman to stand on an F1 podium, marking a major milestone in diversity and inclusion at the sport's technical level.
By 2022, attention expanded to the human infrastructure behind elite teams. At the Spanish Grand Prix, Joanna Fleet appeared on the podium representing Red Bull Racing’s HR and organisational design functions.
Her role includes recruitment, talent acquisition, workforce structure design, and engineering staffing strategy. Formula 1 teams are elite technical organisations. Hiring decisions directly affect performance capability, talent structure influences innovation speed, and retention shapes long-term competitiveness. Her appearance highlighted women shaping the human architecture behind winning teams.
The mid-2020s marked full integration across commercial and financial leadership. At the 2025 Miami Grand Prix, Louise McEwen appeared on the podium as Chief Marketing Officer at McLaren.
Her responsibilities include global brand strategy, sponsorship and commercial partnerships, and fan engagement. Modern Formula 1 is a global entertainment product. Commercial strength funds development, branding drives sponsorship revenue, and audience growth increases financial competitiveness. Her role reflects women operating within the commercial engine of modern Formula 1 success.
Later that year, at the Dutch Grand Prix, Laura Bowden appeared on the podium as McLaren’s Chief Financial Officer.
Under cost cap regulations, her responsibilities include budget control, financial planning, and resource allocation across departments. Since the cost cap’s introduction, financial decisions directly affect performance potential. Spending efficiency has become a competitive advantage, placing CFOs in positions of indirect but significant influence over car development.
In 2025, Hannah Schmitz appeared on the podium for a second time at the Qatar Grand Prix. This reinforced that strategy is not a one-off contribution role. Elite engineers are consistently trusted in high-pressure environments, and Red Bull’s sustained dominance relies heavily on stable strategic leadership. Schmitz has become a symbol of sustained strategic authority within race-winning teams.
Looking ahead, the progression continues. At the 2026 Miami Grand Prix, Amy Walker appeared on the podium as a trackside operations engineer.
Her role involves coordinating garage operations, managing car preparation timelines, ensuring clear communication between engineers and mechanics, and overseeing the execution flow during high-pressure sessions. Operations engineering is critical in Formula 1. The sport operates on seconds and milliseconds; execution errors can cost positions instantly, and coordination is as important as raw technical speed. Walker represents women operating at the heart of live race execution and operational performance.
Across all fourteen podium appearances, a clear evolution emerges. From the 1980s through the early 2000s, representation was symbolic and organisational. Between 2013 and 2016, women entered visible operational engineering roles. From 2019 to 2022, strategy, power units, HR, and executive leadership became prominent. By 2025 and 2026, women were fully integrated across finance, marketing, operations, and race control systems.
What began as visibility has become authority, technical, strategic, and organisational, directly shaping performance in Formula 1.
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