I’m Really Happy When I’m Driving

Klara Kowalczyk is 12 years old from Poland. She started karting in the summer of 2017, and has been racing for Fernando Alonso facotry teams and this year for the factory team CRG. Klara currently races in the OKJ category in the European Championship, the World Championship, and WSK. We had the opportunity to talk to her recently, here is her story.

© All photos provided by Klara Kowalczyk

Paddock Sorority (PS): What was your first exposure to motorsport? How did you actually get started with karting?

Klara Kowalczyk (KK): My karting journey started in 2017 with the drive in the electric racing kart prototype on the laps of my father when I was five and half years old. I told my father that I wanted to learn how to drive this thing and several weeks later my mother found a summer camp with the karting school. After the summer, I joined the indoor karting school, later moved to the open tracks. Early 2018 I was picked up by Natalia Kowalska, former F2 driver, to her karting academy.

PS: What made you decide you want to be a professional driver, not just do this for fun?

KK: Since I was a kid I loved the movie Rush about the legendary rivalry between James Hunt and Niki Lauda, who are now my motorsport idols. When I tried karting I just loved the sport and I realized I love to drive and love the speed. I wanted to race more and more. I have been working hard on becoming better and better driver. I decided to focus on racing in Italy very early to follow my dream on racing in F1.

PS: From whom did you learn the most about racing and driving?

KK: My first coach was Natalia Kowalska when I joined her academy in Poland. I followed her to Italy to Kart Republic and Fernando Alonso facotry teams. This year, I’m driving in factory team CRG and I’m really excited for the world championship.

PS: Seems like your dad takes care a lot of the racing business for you, how are your family supporting your racing career?

KK: My family supports me really, really well. I feel the support from my sister and my brother. My brother is racing too, by the way, and he’s so inspired by me. My mom is really happy that I’m racing, and she helps me with racing too, trying to find new things that could help me. My dad is the main organizer and I’m really thankful that I have him, because I know that not all the parents would help their kids into racing just because they love it. Some parents would be like ‘you’re joking’ and let it go. My dad is really pushing. He said that if I want to stop, it’s okay. But if I want to continue, then he’d do everything to help me.

PS: What has been your best memory in your career so far?

KK: I love all my memories in my career. I don’t have a very specific favorite one. That’s the same with my life. I don’t have any specific favorite moments. I love all my karting races, and I love all the moments in which I can express myself. I’m really happy when I’m sitting in my go-kart and driving.

PS: Has there been a very difficult time in your career? How did you get through it?

KK: Yes. I had a really difficult time when I lost my hearing two years ago. Actually it’s still not back, I’m still half deaf. I can only hear in one ear. One. I was in Italy at the time. I lost my hearing and I started to feel dizzy. I was really afraid when I was in the hospital. I was taking some really hard medicine and I was going into the hyperbaric chamber and everything. I was away from racing for six months. When I first got back on track, I couldn’t drive for more than 5 minutes, because otherwise I would start feel dizzy again. I was really sad because I was scared that I would not be able to get back to racing. But I started working hard and drove more. That was how I got through it. The next day, I made my personal best on that track.

PS: What are your strengths and weaknesses as a driver?

KK: My weakness is that I’m stressed too much. I try to do my best, but when it doesn’t work, I’m pushing myself to get more. I think it’s also a strength, but maybe I’m pushing too much. I have really good reaction time. I’m really hard working and I’m trying my best to get where I want to be.

PS: How do you balance your racing, training, and your school work?

KK: My school is very supportive for people like me. About a year ago, they asked me if I want an individual program in which I can go to lessons with my class, and have 12h of one-on-one sessions with my teacher every week. That’s how I manage my classes, and the teachers really help me. I train every day at the gym after school and work hard on my body. I’m going to some training centers to work on the mental side. I also have my psychologist at home and in Warsaw. I meet her once or twice a week when I’m at home or online if I’m away.

PS: Besides the world championship, do you have other plans for the rest of the season? What about next year?

KK: After the World Championship, I’ll race three remaining WSK races (Sarno, Lonato and Franciacorta). Next year, I’ll be again racing in the OKJ category in the European Championship, the World Championship, and WSK.

PS: More in the long term, if you want to keep going up the ladder, what do you need to still work on?

KK: I need to work really hard on my physical strength because it is single-seaters I’m aiming at. I’m in a really good condition right now, but I still need to work on it to have more strengths in the future. I know that as a girl, my body is working differently than a boy’s body. I need to work hard to get where I want.