Not only can teenager Alice Ene (Romania) drive like a pro, she’s an expert at drifting too. 🚗
At 14 years 79 days old, Alice became the youngest driver to win a Drift King International Series event (female).
Did you know?
Drifting is the act of steering a car so that it skids sideways in a controlled manner through a turn.
Watch Alice in action here 👇
Alice was born into a family that loves motorsports – her dad, Sorin Ene, is also a well-known drift driver.
Sorin began teaching Alice how to drive when she was eight years old. Alice faced many difficulties at the beginning, such as not being able to reach the pedals! 👧
"I needed to use A LOT of pillows, which we placed under me and behind me."
She also struggled to use the handbrake, so Sorin made a special one which was much easier to use.
"When I was 11 years old I did my first drift donuts." – Alice Ene
At age 13, Alice got her professional drift driving license and became one of the youngest drift racers ever.
After growing up watching all of her dad’s races, the young teenager could now compete alongside him. 😎
"I was present at every drift event he participated in (I still am but the difference is that now I am participating too)," she said.
Some of Alice’s friends, schoolmates and family members weren’t supportive of her drifting dreams at first. 😒
"They were saying: ‘You are a girl, a kid, you don’t have anything to do with cars. Go sing or dance.’"
Alice didn’t let this affect her though because she knew they were wrong.
"If we are girls it doesn’t mean we can’t perform in drift, rally, karting or any other sports in which there are usually boys." - Alice Ene
"My parents and my little sister are always by my side, and their support is the most important thing," she said. 👨👩👧👧
Alice enjoys everything about drifting. Although it involves skidding around corners at high speed, it can also be very calming.
"When I am drifting, I am in my own world and there is just me and my car," Alice explained.
Alice has competed in a variety of events and the drivers she has come up against include men and women of all ages.
The Drift King International Series is where some of the world’s best drift drivers go to compete. 🚗
The event Alice won to achieve her record was the first stage of the Drift Queen Series on 30 May 2021 in Greece. 🏆
Alice’s drifting was judged based on:
- The line, or path, of her car on the circuit
- Her speed
- The cornering angle
- How cool it looked
After winning the first stage, Alice continued to finish on the podium at all of the next four stages. She gained enough points to win the entire series, officially becoming the Drift Queen. 👑
Since then, Alice has also competed in the European Pro2 Series, where she finished fourth place in the overall championship – all before her 15th birthday!
Recently, in August 2022, Alice drove for the first time on the famous Nürburgring in Germany, a race track which is known for its tight corners and fast speeds – perfect for drifting.
She competed in the Nürburgring Drift Cup, "in PRO class (the best class)." 😀
Her dad warned her how tough the competition would be, but Alice was determined to show off her skills.
Hitting speeds of 160 km/h (99.4 mph), Alice managed to qualify in 22nd place out of 53 drivers.
Alice was then eliminated in the next stage, but she put on an amazing performance for her first ever time at the track!
"I was in battle with someone from Germany, who was driving on the Nürburgring for their 103rd time."
If you’d like to pursue a career in motorsports, Alice’s advice is to “turn to a professional trainer.”
"You can discover and learn a lot on your own, but when you want to perform, you need much more. A professional trainer helps you develop."
"A very important thing is that everything I did was in safe places - on a track - NOT on streets or public roads."
Alice is tempted to try other motorsports in the future, but for now her focus is on becoming the best drift driver in the world.
"We didn't set out on this road with the thought of setting records, we only know that we worked very hard, got involved and made a lot of sacrifices to participate in the drift competitions." – Alice Ene
