|
|
||
All content © Bob Mullins | |||
 
Jane Daniels Wins Women’s Class at Dakar 2024 and Finishes as Top Brit ACU Report After two long weeks of racing, British FIM World Enduro Champion, Jane Daniels finished the 2024 Dakar in an extraordinary 48th place – in doing so was the top British rider and only woman finisher! The 29-year-old from Wigan, was competing in her first Dakar having previously been crowned FIM Enduro World Champion four times and where she is unbeaten in two years! Riding the Fantic Racing XEF 450 Rally, the team hoped Jane would be able to emulate the success of Laia Sanz, another multiple enduro world champion. Matilde Tomagnini, Development Manager for Fantic Racing spoke of Jane’s remarkable debut in the Dakar:
Jane was in solid form and rode consistently from the start of the Dakar and demonstrated stage after stage that she had exactly what it takes to make a name for herself on the Dakar. During the event, she showed incredible character in coming to the aid of her team-mate, Jeremy Miroir, where she towed him for 60 km to finish the special stage and then for another 95 km to get him to the bivouac – an act that led to Jane being awarded the DARE award for the ‘Dakar Spirit’. On the final day, Jane crossed the finish line in 48th place on the stage, to be crowned the Women’s Champion and top British finisher – she was also greeted by her teammate, who without her support would not have made it to the finish. Jane proved herself to be the great champion that she is, a born fighter, who never gives up. At the finish Jane spoke of her first Dakar experience: "I'm really happy to be at the finish line in one piece. It is the hardest race I have ever run; exhausting both physically and mentally. It is my first Dakar, I didn’t know what to really expect, but I gave my best every day. “To be honest, this rally is a lot harder than I imagined. We're covering
more kilometres than I thought, and the days are really long... In Enduro, you
ride for a maximum of 8 hours a day with a special of an hour and a half, and
the longest event lasts six days. Here, you spend 12 hours a day on the bike and
the specials are easily more than five hours long. It's hard to stay
concentrated for that long. Congratulations Jane, everyone at the ACU is very proud of you and your achievement!
|
“Choosing
Jane was a gamble for us, and we're not disappointed, she has demonstrated that
she is a very tough rider. For example, after a nasty crash on the first day of
the 48 HR Chrono stage, she continued for over 200km with her handlebars and
navigation tower completely bent, until she managed to partially put them back
in place”.