I had the opportunity to chat with motorsports up-and-comer Katrina Ee. At only 14-years-old, she has been dominating the karting scene all around Asia and is a 3 time Asian Karting Champion. She is one of only six drivers of More than Equal, an elite drivers development program for young female talent, and is also the sole Asian member. The More than Equal program was co-founded by former Formula 1 driver and current broadcaster, David Coulthard.
Katrina got into karting at the age of 7 when she joined karting as a hobby alongside her older sister. Katrina loved the adrenaline, the competitiveness, and the fact that she was one of so few girls in the sport, which made her want to succeed even more. She had tried other sports in the past, but she really found her passion in karting. She is of Malaysia and Hong Kong heritage and is working towards being the first Asian Female F1 Driver.
When asked about a week in her life, it was clear that she is always on the go and that every week is different from the next. She takes part in More Than Equal training camps, training sessions with performance coaches, race weekends, and school on top of everything.
As an athlete and a student, Katrina finds a balance by taking her schooling online alongside her fellow karters at Minerva Virtual Academy, an online school made for athletes. This allows her to have more flexibility for her busy karting schedule and still keep up with her academics. Her favourite subjects in school are Art and English as she enjoys being creative and painting, while she has also always liked English literature.
Katrina’s training schedule varies and changes from week to week. She trains to strengthen her neck, improve her reaction times, along with her upper and lower body strength. Katrina’s coach focuses on prioritizing different areas of the body, adjusting workouts if she is ever sore. Katrina trains her neck and reaction times every day.
A typical race weekend varies from race to race, as there is no standard warm up, qualifying, and race as you see in Formula 1. Katrina always comes to the track as early as she can and meets with her team to discuss the upcoming race, where she can improve, and the track conditions.
Katrina’s favourite place that she has competed in is Thailand. She enjoys the competitiveness of the track and being in Asia feels like home to her. The track is next to a beach, so after a race she can go there, which makes it feel like a holiday to her.
“There is a lot of good competitive racers in Asia” - Katrina Ee
Katrina’s karting journey changed drastically when she joined the More than Equal driver development program. She was introduced to the program the day before the deadline to apply via a direct message on Instagram from her now manager, Darryl O’ Young. Hundreds of thousands of girls applied for the elite development program, but only 6 girls were selected. Katrina found out in April that she had been selected for the program, with the news later being announced in May. She says that working with More than Equal has really helped her to improve both mentally and physically, and work to get her ready for Formula 1 one day.
Katrina’s role model in motorsport is Lewis Hamilton and has been since she started karting. She looks up to him for his strength, intelligence, and his resilience. When watching Formula 1’s Drive to Survive on Netflix, Katrina was inspired most by Lewis Hamilton’s story and his determination to get to where he is today.
Katrina’s biggest supporters are her parents, “they’ve been there since I started, it's a big opportunity that they allow me to do this”. Katrina did not come from a motorsports background and says that because of her parents, she has been able to live this life and compete around the world. No matter if she wins or loses, her parents are always there for her.
When asked about the next steps for her after karting she said that she is currently looking at different opportunities for the future, attending More Than Equal training camps, and races in Europe. Her future goal is to step into Formula 4 and then F1 Academy. She loves the F1 Academy series and all that it continues to do to provide opportunities for women and girls in motorsport.
Katrina’s advice for young girls going into karting is to trust the process. She says that it is difficult and that you will go through a lot of ups and downs, but once you have the best support system around you, that’s when you’ll have the most confidence.
“You have to believe in yourself and keep going if you really love doing it” – Katrina Ee
This year Katrina is looking forward to participating in the various training camps with More Than Equal and focusing mentally and physically on herself. Last year she made the jump to racing outside of Asia, where she found herself racing within the UK, which was a year of learning. This year, she is looking forward to challenging herself, taking risks, and seeing how she can further improve.
Katrina was absolutely lovely to speak with. She is dedicated to her craft and definitely brighter than I was at her age. I am very excited to follow her journey ahead. You can keep up with her journey too by following her Instagram @katrinaee13.
Edited by Neha Grewal
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