Rwandan rally driver Queen Kalimpinya has been named the best female driver in the Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) following her performance during a rally held alongside the WRC Safari Rally Kenya 2026.
Kalimpinya, who competed with co-driver Olivier Ngabo, raced in a Subaru Impreza WRX STi during the competition that concluded on Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Her performance saw her emerge as the top-performing female driver representing her country in the Kenya National Rally Championship category, which was run as part of the globally recognized Safari Rally.
Kalimpinya, who was the second runner-up in the Miss Rwanda 2017 pageant, is also the first Rwandan woman to compete in the WRC Safari Rally, one of the events featured on both the African and global rally championship calendars.
The 74th edition of the WRC Safari Rally Kenya 2026 was won by Japanese driver Takamoto Katsuta, who competed alongside Irish co-driver Aaron Johnston.
The four-day rally attracted 41 cars, including three entries from Team Rwanda and Kalimpinya’s crew.
Katsuta completed the race in three hours, 16 minutes and five seconds, becoming the first Japanese driver to win the prestigious Safari Rally since Yoshio Fujimoto claimed victory in 1995.
Among the Rwandan crews, the team of Christian Kanangire and co-driver Kevin Shyaka was the only one to finish the rally, securing third place in the Africa Rally Championship 2 category and ninth overall in the Africa Rally Championship standings.
