Sara navigates her way to an Irish rallying first despite being visually impaired

Teenager Sara McFadden has become the first visually impaired person to compete in Irish rallying.

The 17-year-old, who recently acquired her competition licence, was co-driver to her father, Keith, in their Renault Clio and competed in yesterday’s Ollie Kierce Motors Imokilly Rally at Midleton in east Cork.

While it was a lifetime ambition, the achievement was all the more remarkable given that Sara was born with albinism — a genetic condition typified by the partial or complete absence of pigment in the skin, hair, and eyes. In addition, Sara has to cope with nystagmus.