I fought back from 171mph horror crash and 11-hour operation to become the only woman in Formula 3
SOPHIA FLOERSCH could have been forgiven for thinking her time in F3 was up.
Back in 2018, when she was just 17, the German driver was involved in a horror crash at the Macau Grand Prix that left five people seriously injured and saw her rushed to hospital.
A shattered spine, the result of which saw her catapulted off a bend and into a cabin, meant she had to undergo an 11-hour operation.
Surgeons worked tirelessly over half a day to ensure her fractured vertebra was stabilised.
But on Friday, beautiful Sophia will return to F3 for the first time in nearly three years.
This season, she is signed to PHM Racing by Charouz - and is the ONLY woman on the grid.
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Better still, her dream of competing in Formula 1 has been reignited after Alpine added her to their Driver Academy.
Inspired by Vettel and dad
Ever since she was four, Sophia dreamed of being a racing driver.
Her dad drove karts, which encouraged her to do the same when she was a child growing up in Bavaria.
The success of four-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel, also inspired her to follow in his footsteps.
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“I always watched his races and I was always like: ‘I want to be there’," she told .
"So of course, you dream of it. But you’re small and so, so far away, especially when you’re in karting.”
Sophia soon became a trailblazer in her sport - setting records for being the fastest, youngest and the only woman, as she rose through the ranks of various racing formats.
Although being female had its challenges.
She continued: "There are people who say: ‘You’re a woman, you’re not going to make it.
"But in the end, this just motivates myself even more.
"I think as a woman, a struggle you have is to find people to give you money for it. Everyone knows that the sport is really expensive and you can spend a lot of money just for going testing during [the] winter period or so.
“And that’s kind of the struggle you have as a woman, to find companies who believe in you, who trust you to beat the man and to get the same chances and possibilities."
This season, that support has come from Formula 3 promoter Bruno Michel.
Michel recently revealed that the series is helping Floersch with her budget this season to encourage more women to take part in motorsport.
That fateful day
But there might not have been another campaign for Sophia, after miraculously surviving her Macau accident.
Following a collision with Japan’s Sho Tsuboi, her car went airborne over the safety barriers - drawing gasps from an anxious crowd.
Incredibly, Sophia survived the accident. Her fractured spine, though, required an intricate, pain-staking operation.
Surgeons worked meticulously to remove a bone splinter that was just inches away from her spinal cord.
After returning home to recover, incredibly she was back behind the wheel four months later.
Remembering the incident, Floersch felt like it happened to someone else.
“If I watched the video, I still don’t believe it’s me flying there just because it didn’t feel like this when I was in a car,” she confessed.
Fighting for equality
When it comes to gender equality, motorsport is lacking in female role models.
An advocate for change, Sophia understands that being the fastest driver isn't about being a man or a woman.
“It’s not about having more muscles. There’s more factors which are playing in," she explained.
"I think women can do the same and women can drive a car as quickly as a man and drive it on the limit the same.
"There was never a really successful woman in the class of motorsport, but it is for sure possible.
"A lot of things have changed during the past years. I think for sure change is going on in the business.
"But in the end, I think women still have to prove ourselves; we still have to prove it and win championships and against men and not against other women."
Which takes her to her next goal.
Floersch is now a step closer to racing in F1, after Alpine confirmed they had added her to its Driving Academy last month.
"Joining the Alpine Academy is an honour and a major opportunity in my career," Floersch said.
"I have great ambitions and I am sure by applying the knowledge and expertise from Alpine, it will only help me grow.
"I can’t wait to start this new chapter and represent the Alpine brand on the global stage."
The F1 constructors are pushing for more female drivers with their 'Race(H)er' programme launched last summer.
Last year, Floersch stated: "I'm 21 years old and I think I can and should pursue this goal," when asked if she believes she has a future in F1.
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Judging by her courage and resilience, that goal
