Have we forgotten Taru Rinne? The frustrating legacy of a woman on two wheels.
- Arantza Asali
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
In the late 1980s, as racing engines screamed around Europe’s fastest circuits, a young Finnish rider was making history. Taru Rinne wasn’t another name on the entry list in the 125cc World Championship. She was a woman competing at the highest level of motorcycle racing at the time, a rarity still today.
Battling Legends
Taru began her racing life on four wheels before switching to two, battling future Formula 1 stars like Mika Häkkinen in Finnish karting championships. She was fast, focused and fiercely competitive. In 1979, she won her first Finnish title, and by 1983 she had become one of the best young karters in the country. That year, however, a disqualification for using illegal fuel cut her momentum short. Banned from competition for a year, she made the choice to pivot her focus from karts to motorcycles, and that would place her in the pages of motorsport history.
Success on two wheels
Rinne made her grand prix motorcycle debut in 1988 in the 125cc class, the predecessor to Moto3. The following year, she became the first woman to score points in the world championship, finishing 14th at the French Grand Prix at Le Castellet. It was a modest result on paper, but a monumental achievement in the sport’s history. Facing the classic gendered doubt and criticism of the time, she showed she was no token participant. She earned her place with speed and skill alone.
Her real breakout season came in 1989. At the Hockenheim round in West Germany, she stunned the paddock by qualifying second on the grid. Not only did she start on the front row, but she also led the race for several laps before finishing a remarkable seventh. Later that year, she took eighth place at the Dutch TT in Assen. These were not flukes or wet-weather anomalies. She was riding against some of the best in the world and proving her pace in legendary tracks we still talk about today.
A story cut short
But just as her career seemed ready to take off, it was cut short. In 1991, during practice at Paul Ricard, she suffered a serious crash and broke both ankles. While still recovering from the accident, she received a letter from Bernie Ecclestone, then involved in the commercial side of the sport but not officially in a governing role. The letter informed her she would not be allowed to continue racing in the championship, effectively ending any hope of returning to the grid, and by extension her career. In Taru’s words, it was “the biggest disappointment of my life”.
Why did that happen? There’s no official public record detailing exactly why Taru Rinne was not allowed to return to grand prix racing after her injury, and that’s part of why the decision remains so controversial and frustrating. Was it simply about performance or was it more complicated than that? With standout moments in her campaign, it can be difficult to ignore the fact that she was a woman in a sport dominated by men. If she had been a young male rider with similar results, would she have been encouraged to recover and return? We can’t know for sure.
Looking ahead
Taru Rinne never returned to grand prix racing after that crash, but her achievement and legacy should not be forgotten. She opened the door, even if only slightly, for the women who followed. Riders like Tomoko Igata, Katja Poensgen, María Herrera and Ana Carrasco have all carried the torch forward. Rinne was the first to show that a woman could race hard, lead laps and challenge the established order in motorcycle Grand Prix racing.
She may not have been given the chance to finish her own story, but the riders of today are helping write the next chapter of women on two wheels.
Taru Rinne two wheel racing legacy