Successful engineer Leena Gade is leaving Audi to take up another position in the Volkswagen group. Audi Sport and Team Joest recently presented her with the 2011 Le Mans trophy as a leaving present.

Racing engineers are not often in the limelight. As the first woman to win Le Mans, with Audi in 2011, Leena Gade is one of the best-known. Trained by former technical director of Audi Sport, Howden Haynes, she was victorious at Le Mans again in 2012 and 2014, took ten rounds of the World Endurance Championship and also won the manufacturer and driver championship titles with the same driver crew.

The 2011 Le Mans 24 Hours was a particularly hard-fought battle. Audi’s race began badly. Experienced Le Mans driver Allan McNish, who already had two wins under his belt, cannoned the R18 into the tyre wall where it upended. The Scotsman emerged unscathed but Audi was down to two cars against Peugeot’s three.

Then, at nightfall, defending champion Mike Rockenfeller veered into the barrier trying to avoid contact while overtaking. Once again, the R18’s safety feature, made mandatory by ACO regulations, served its purpose and the German driver escaped with minor injuries. However, Audi was left with only one car with which to fend off the Peugeot armada. The manufacturer made a strength out of a weakness: the whole outfit pulled together behind the remaining crew. On track, Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer and Benoît Tréluyer did their utmost with expert guidance from an unflinching Leena Gade in the pitlane.

Her strategy paid off. The #2 Audi R18 TDI beat the #9 Peugeot 908 by 13.854 seconds.  The trophy is a fitting parting gift and will no doubt bring her luck in her new job.

Photo: Audi engineer Leena Gade received the 2011 Le Mans 24 Hours trophy as a leaving present from Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer, Benoît Tréluyer and team manager Ralf Jüttner.