In a country where motorsport is still struggling to find its foundation, one young woman has already made history on the track. Kashfia Arfa is Bangladesh’s first female racer to compete in an international FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) competition. This breakthrough is as much about speed as it is about shattering barriers.
Kashfia’s path to racing wasn’t a straight line. She studied at Viqarunnisa Noon School and College, and outside the classroom, represented the Bangladesh Handball Federation U-19 team. Those early years of team sport taught her discipline, resilience, and a taste for competition. But cars were her true passion. Long before she earned her FIA license, Kashfia was a familiar face at Dhaka’s car meets, part of a tight-knit community of enthusiasts.
Yet passion alone wasn’t enough. Motorsport in Bangladesh lacks infrastructure, with no professional racetracks, training academies, or sponsors willing to invest. For Kashfia, the first challenge was simply being taken seriously. In a male-dominated arena, scepticism followed her every step. But with determination, she pushed past the doubt and carved her own way forward.
Her defining moment came in 2024, when she competed in the second round of the Asian Auto Gymkhana Championship. Facing seasoned racers from across Asia, Kashfia placed sixth in the Mix-Doubles class – an impressive debut that proved she had both the talent and grit to compete internationally. The road there was far from easy: she had to adapt to left-hand drive cars and master a new track layout on short notice.
Much of her progress has been supported by the Automobile Association of Bangladesh (AAB), the only body authorised to issue FIA licenses. Still, Kashfia’s rise is a testament not just to institutional support but to her relentless drive.
For Kashfia, this is only the beginning. She dreams of bigger races, faster tracks, and more opportunities to represent Bangladesh on the global stage. But perhaps her greatest ambition lies beyond the circuit: to inspire young women to step into arenas where they are told they don’t belong.
As she puts it, every lap is not just a race against the clock – it’s a race against doubt. And each time she crosses the finish line, she proves that barriers, no matter how high, can always be broken.
