Fame

Junková competed in her first race in 1924 and won. She was short in stature but that didn’t impede her as she put pillows in her seat. She quickly rose to fame, racing her trademark Bugatti across Europe’s most difficult courses. Her greatest successes were 1st place in the Zbraslav-Jíloviště hillclimb (1926), 2nd place in the under-2-litre sports car class Klausenpass hillclimb (1926), 1st place in the Coupé des Dames (1927), and 1st place for lady drivers in the Grand Prix of Montlhéry (1927). When she won 1st place in the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring (1927), she became the first woman to ever win such a race. In the excitement, her competitor, Otto Merz, congratulated her with a big hug, leaving her small frame with two broken ribs! Her pioneering legacy was preserved in the classic jazz composition "Bugatti Step” by famous Czech composer Jaroslav Ježek.