Like a lot of young people attracted to motorcycling, 26 year old Behnaz Shafiei loves competition and dreams of racing internationally for top honours. Unlike most of those young people we can relate to, Shafiei is a woman living in Iran, where her gender and sport don’t make this easy.
She told the Guardian newspaper “I want to be part of my own country’s team, I don’t want to go abroad. I want to bring pride to Iran and show that Iranian women can do this sport too.”
She added: “Outside, Iran is depicted differently. We want to change that view. People ask if women are allowed to drive in Iran. Of course they are.”
Watch the BBC clip or read the Guardian piece to find out how this woman is taking on the social establishment in her home country, one dirt track at a time.
(feature image: Mohammad Moheimany/jamejamimage.ir)
