About Giovanna Amati
Giovanna Amati (Italian pronunciation: [dʒoˈvanna aˈmaːti]) (born 20 July 1959) is an Italian former professional racing driver. She is the most recent female driver to have entered the Formula One World Championship. Brought up in a wealthy background, Amati was kidnapped in 1978 before being released on an 800 million lira ransom. Amati started her racing career in Formula Abarth series, before moving up into Formula Three for 1985–86. An entry into Formula 3000 in 1987 brought little success but the following year, Amati improved her performances. She moved to Japan for 1989 but still had no success. A move back to Europe in 1990 saw better performances that continued into 1991. In 1992, Amati became the fifth and last woman Formula One driver when she signed for Brabham. By the end of the year, Amati tested a Formula One car for the first time, completing 30 laps on a Benetton. Amati was the first female driver to enter a Formula One race since Desiré Wilson in 1980 and the announcement earned a great degree of publicity for the then struggling Brabham team.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.