Nazan Zorlu, the first Turkish female pilot to become the champion of female pilots in the Italian National Asphalt Rally Championship, is now preparing to break another first for Türkiye. Zorlu, who will start in The Alpine A290 Rally Trophy, the electric car rally cup organized together with the Le Touquet Pas-de-Calais Rally, which will be run under the French National Rally Championship between 26-28 March, will be the first Turkish athlete to compete in this series.
Zorlu made motor sports history by becoming the first Turkish female rally pilot to win the Women Pilots’ Cup in the Italian National Asphalt Rally Championship in the 2024 season and become the first Turkish female rally pilot to win the title in a national rally championship in Europe. Following this historic success, he is now preparing to open a new page in his career by starting in the electric car rally cup in France.
Le Touquet Pas-de-Calais Rally, which will be held on 26-28 March, will be the first stop of Zorlu’s international journey in the 2026 season. For Nazan Zorlu, this new step is not just a sporting continuity; It means determination to take a position in the transforming face of motor sports. In Zorlu’s words, “This season we are racing not just for speed, but for a new era. The championship we won in 2024 was not a result, but a threshold.”
It is not only courage that determines the fate of the race; determines efficiency and strategy
Le Touquet Pas-de-Calais Rally, held in Le Touquet city on the English Channel coast of Northern France and considered one of the most prestigious asphalt races of the French Rally Championship, has a special importance as it is the opening race of the season. Known for its high-speed asphalt stages, narrow and technical rural roads, variable weather conditions and strong international participation, the organization brings together Europe’s most ambitious teams every year. Running the electric car rally cup within the scope of this race makes the organization a symbol of a new era not only in sports but also in technological terms. As noise is replaced by high-torque electric performance, the fate of the race is no longer just about courage; determines energy management, efficiency and strategy.
A first in Turkish motor sports
Nazan Zorlu’s participation in the electric rally cup in France is a historical step for Turkish motor sports. As the first Turkish athlete to compete in this series, Zorlu opens a new page not only in his own career, but also in Türkiye’s international motor sports representation. While this move brings together the vision of sustainable mobility and performance; It also sends a strong message for female athletes to be more visible on high-level international platforms.
During the 2026 season, Nazan Zorlu will participate in the electric rally cup in France, following Le Touquet, in the Vosges Grand Est Rally to be held on 12-14 June, the Rouergue Rodez Aveyron Occitanie Rally on 9-11 July, the Mont-Blanc Morzine Rally on 3-5 September, the Cœur de France Rally to be held on 25-27 September and the season finale. He will also compete in the Cévennes Criterium stages between 22 and 24 October.
The start, which will be held in Le Touquet on March 26-28, means more than the beginning of a race. This start is preparing to be recorded as the first step taken in the electric rally era for Türkiye.
Automobile Magazine – English
