Greece, Jun 2: The Indian national anthem played at a circuit in Greece on Sunday. On the top step of the podium, fighting back tears, stood an 11-year-old girl who calls Jammu and Kashmir her home.
Atiqa Mir, who represents the Kashmir valley with every race she runs, delivered the most dominant performance of her career in Round 2 of the Champions of the Future Academy Program — a clean sweep of qualifying, both heat races, and the final.
“Winning all the races on such a difficult and physical track — I was very emotional when the national anthem played. There is no better feeling than that,” Atiqa told Kashmir Convener.
In a field of 25 drivers in the OK-NJ category (ages 12-14), all running identical equipment, she won the final by more than 2.6 seconds — a staggering margin in motorsport. She had already secured pole with a record lap of 56.77 seconds, nearly three-tenths ahead of the second-placed driver.
Three drivers in history. With her sensational show, Atiqa became only the third driver in the series’ history to sweep qualifying, heats, and finals. In Heat Race 1, she dominated from start to finish. In Heat Race 2, she won by more than a second. In the gruelling 15-lap final, she built a 3.9-second advantage in just eight laps — a racing masterclass.
All this in her first season in the category, against older and more experienced male drivers.
She is the first Indian to be supported by the Formula 1 Academy, and her ambition is clear: to become the first female in Formula 1 since the early 1990s.
A day earlier in Round 2.1, Atiqa had qualified fourth due to setup issues but still finished P2 and P1 in the two heat races. A crash in that final left her frustrated.
Her father Asif Mir, a former Formula Asia vice-champion, watched the turnaround unfold.
“I was surprised by her pace, aggression and professional approach all weekend,” he said. “She was very upset from Day 1 after the crash. I think that drove her to give this commanding performance. A proud moment for Indian motorsport.”
Born in Mumbai but with family roots in Jammu and Kashmir, Atiqa has made it clear she races not just for India — but for the valley she comes from.
On Sunday in Thessaloniki, she made sure the world heard its name. And heard the national anthem too.
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