Racecar Driver Keiko Ihara Raises Awareness of TOMODACHI at Race in Dubai

January 17, 2012 – Japanese racecar driver Keiko Ihara raised awareness for TOMODACHI during the Dubai 24 Hour endurance race on January 11-14, 2012 by sporting the TOMODACHI logo on her racing suit and car. Ihara learned about TOMODACHI during a presentation on the initiative to the U.S.-Japan Leadership Program, a network of young future leaders from the United States and Japan of which she is a member. She wanted to do something to help her fellow citizens who had suffered so much during the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, and offered to race to support TOMODACHI.

Ihara is one of only a handful of women who are competing in the male-dominated world of international auto racing, accumulating several top 10 finishes on various racing circuits. A former model, she got interested in the sport during a modeling assignment at a race.

Ihara became the first woman to win a race sanctioned by the Federation Internationale d’Automobile (FIA) in 2002, when she won two races in the Asian Formula 2000 series. She finished third in the Asian Formula 2000 category at the 2002 Macau Grand Prix, becoming the first women on the podium in the race’s 50-year history. Ihara also won a number of prizes most recently at LeMans in 2009 and the British Formula 3 International series in 2005-2006.

In addition to her involvement with TOMODACHI and the U.S.-Japan Leadership Program, Ihara is active on social, environmental, and transportation issues.