The pristine and polished test center of the Sauber Formula One team is a far cry from the humble go-karting track Tatiana Calderon used to tear around as a kid.
Every day after school, Calderon would visit the track — situated in her Bogota neighborhood — with her sister, harboring dreams of one day reaching Formula One, motorsport’s promised land.
Having worked her way through local, regional and then national championships — often becoming the first female to achieve various feats — Calderon eventually had to juggle her education and her passion, as karting became more serious.
“I’ve always been a sports lover but I started karting when I was nine years old,” Calderon tells CNN’s The Circuit. “My sister took me to our rental go kart track near our house.