Women’s World Car of the Year picks female crash-test dummy inventor for award

MADRID: The judges in Women’s World Car of the Year have voted for the Woman of Worth Award. There were 15 nominations in the running and the winner was Dr Astrid Linder, who developed the world’s first female crash-test dummy.

Dr Linder received her PhD in traffic safety from Sweden's Chalmers University, where she also has a MSc in Engineering Physics.

She co-ordinated the EU-funded project ADSEAT where the world’s first virtual dummy model of an average female for rear impact, EvaRID, was developed.

Previously, crash-test dummies were based on the "average" male which was just one example of a bias in car design that, as a consequence, put female lives at risk.

New Zealand motoring journalist Sandy Myhre created Women's World Car of the Year in 2009, and it is said to be the only car awards group in the world comprised exclusively of women motoring journalists.

The awards aim to recognise the best cars of the year and to give a voice to women in the automotive world. The voting criteria are based on the same principles that guide any driver when choosing a car.