top of page
Writer's pictureCOCKPIT

Ewy Rosqvist-von Korff: a star goes out

Baroness Ewy von Korff-Rosqvist, the only female racing driver for the Mercedes rally team, died on July 4, 2024 at the age of 94. Back to this extraordinary woman.



Rare women to shine in the firmament in the automotive world, Ewy Rosqvist-von Korff


is part of.




Born Ewy Jensson on August 3, 1929 in Stora Herrestad (Ystad, southern Sweden), she was one of five children and lived on the farm her parents ran.


After attending high school and agricultural school, she studied veterinary medicine in Stockholm.


Responsible for a district with scattered farms, her father bought her a Mercedes-Benz 170 S (W136), with which she traveled 150 to 200 km per day, up and down narrow dirt roads. His love for driving fast and safe over difficult terrain was discovered.


In her autobiography “Driving through hell,” she wrote: “After two years, I was driving so well that I often finished the day an hour and a half to two hours before my female colleagues despite all my stops at the farm.»


She married Yngve Rosqvist in 1954, with whom she participated in the Midnight Sun Rally the same year, and also had her chance behind the wheel: "I was allowed to drive on some intermediate stages and it was so much fun that I decided to participate in a rally myself, or as a co-driver. as soon as possible,” she later recalled.


In 1956, she took part in a solo gathering for the first time.


She won the Women's Cup four times at the 1000 Lakes Rally in Finland and also topped the women's standings at numerous other rallies across Europe.


In 1959, she won the Women's European Cup in a Volvo ahead of Pat Moss, Stirling's sister. She was presented with the trophy at the Monte Carlo Rally ceremony by Princess Grace of Monaco in 1960 – a trophy she won again the following year.


She also received the Women's International Rally Cup (Coupe des Dames) in 1959 and 1961. In 1960, she became a factory driver for Volvo.


The life of a Mercedes Works driver



Mercedes-Benz brought the successful rally driver into the factory team with co-driver Ursula Wirth in 1962.


Driving a Mercedes-Benz 220 SE (W111), the women's team won the Women's Cup at the four-day Swedish Rally under the Midnight Sun in 1962, followed by sixth place at the 22nd Polski Raid and a 12th place at the Liège-Sofia-Liège Rally the same year.


On November 4, 1962, with his co-driver Wirth, Ewy won the VI Argentine Touring Car Grand Prix in phenomenal fashion. The women's team won all six stages of the 4,626 km race and set a new record - increasing the average speed of the previous year's winning team from 121.234 km/h to 126.872 km/h.


In the following years, Ewy enjoyed success on several occasions in renowned rallies and long-distance races, including the 1963 Women's Cup victory at the Monte Carlo Rally, victory in the engine class up to to 2,500 cc in a six-hour race at the Nürburgring, as well as third place at the Argentine Touring Car Grand Prix.


In 1964, together with Eva Maria Falk, she was able to win in the category up to 2,500 cc at the Monte Carlo Rally, finish fifth at the International Acropolis Rally and secure third place at the Spa-Sofia-Liège Rally.


Ewy finished her racing career at the 1964 Argentine Touring Car Grand Prix, where she finished third. In June of the same year, she married the then head of Mercedes-Benz's motorsport business, Baron Alexander von Korff, in the chapel of the Old Stuttgart Castle.


She would later return to Sweden after her husband's death in 1977, but remained – and always will remain – closely associated with the brand and as an ambassador for Mercedes-Benz Classic.




Marcus Breitschwerdt, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Heritage GmbH said following her passing: “Mercedes-Benz will always remember and honor this extraordinary woman and her achievements,”

“She did a lot for motorsport – and at the same time she shaped the image of women in motorsport, especially as an overall winner against the strongest of her era.»


Like all stars, it will continue to shine long after it has gone out.



0 comments

Comments