Photo: NASCAR
While the Daytona 500 Race is a historic event within the world of NASCAR, these three women are making history on their own terms.
Both O’Leary, 27, and Daniels became the first female pit crew members to go over the wall for the same team in a NASCAR Cup Series race in 2018, and in February that same year, the two became the first female NASCAR Drive for Diversity graduates to pit in the Daytona 500. This Sunday, Ouendeno will join them as the first foreign-born graduate of the program to pit the Daytona 500.
“Making history, it means a lot, and I feel like God couldn’t have picked anybody else better to do the job,” Daniels tells PEOPLE. “It takes a strong person to be in the position that I’m in to make change. And definitely all the other women that looked like me.”
Daniels smiles during a race at the Homestead-Miami speedway in 2019.Courtesy of NASCAR
“She was like, ‘Hey you know, the NASCAR pit crew has come to the school to host a trial on Wednesday’,” says Daniels. “I looked at her like, ‘Girl, I don’t evenwatchNASCAR.'”
Ouendeno, 23, was also far removed from the American racing world — she was born in France and didn’t speak English until arriving in the U.S. She was a defender on the University of Miami’s soccer team and then played for a top division French soccer team, Paris St. German, from 2009 to 2015. She later became a graduate of the 2019-20 NASCAR Drive for Diversity program and pitted her first NASCAR national series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2020.
Daniels showing Ouendeno the ropes at NASCAR’s 2019 pit crew combine.NASCAR
O’Leary, a previous softball player at Alcorn State University, also never imagined herself as a pit crew member for NASCAR, but she has been a tire changer for the organization for five years now. She says the best part of the experience has been making a difference for young women and girls.
“When I came into this, it was just me pursuing this opportunity,” O’Leary tells PEOPLE. “I didn’t even know that I could be making such an impact until people would bring it to light, and they would come up to me and be like, ‘I can tell my granddaughter, you can do this too.'”
O’Leary sprints into action for a pit stop at a recent race.NASCAR
“I really don’t listen to what the naysayers have to say,” says Daniels. “It just gives me [the] motivation to do more of what I’m already doing. Everybody’s not happy that I’m in the position that I’m in … but I’m optimistic about things. I don’t really change for anyone.”
With the anticipation of the 2021 Daytona 500 this Sunday, the three are focused after preparing all season for each racing event that comes their way. Daniels and Ouendeno will pit for the No. 51 Rick Ware Racing team, while O’Leary will pit for Chip Ganassi Racing.
O’Leary hopes that racing will continue to make strides to become a sport that’s welcoming to all.
“I think that just bringing diversity to the sport, that’s how everybody gets better,” says O’Leary. “That’s how things are able to grow, because somebody might come from somewhere and teach me something I didn’t know. So I think it should be welcome to everybody and everybody who wants to do it should work hard and can do it.”
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Morgan Smith
source: people.com
