Breeana Walker: Difference between revisions

Bree Walker
	Bree Walker Winterberg Monobob World Championship award ceremony
Personal information
Nationality	Australian
Born	28 August 1992 (age 32); Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Height	1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	74 kg (163 lb)
Sport
Country	Australia
Sport	Bobsleigh
Event(s)	Monobob, Two Woman Bobsleigh
Turned pro	2017
Medal record
Women's bobsleigh
Representing Australia
World Cup

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Revision as of 19:09, 26 December 2024

Breeana "Bree" Walker born on August 28, 1992, in Mount Evelyn, Melbourne, Australia, is a distinguished Australian Bobsleigh pilot who transitioned from a track and field career to make history in the winter sport for Australia.

Career

Beginnings in Track and Field and switching to Bobsleigh

Walker began her athletic journey specialising in sprint and mid distance events before tunnelling her focus towards 400-meter hurdles. In her senior years of athletics, she competed for Doncaster Athletic Club, under the watchful eye of her coach Tom Kelly. She clinched the Victoria 400m hurdle state championship in 2013, which earned her a full track and field scholarship to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. However, after a year, she returned to Australia, feeling that the U.S. training emphasis on muscle mass had adversely affected her performance. Back home, she trained under Peter Fortune, renowned for coaching Olympic champion Cathy Freeman.

Transition to Bobsleigh

In 2016, driven by her Olympic aspirations and inspired by athletes like Jana Pittman and Kim Brennan, Walker switched to bobsleigh. She joined the national team through a talent camp organized by Sliding Sports Australia and self-funded her pilot training at the Whistler Sliding Center in Canada.

Bobsleigh Career

In the 2017–18 season, Walker competed with brakewomen Mikayla Dunn and Ashleigh Werner in the North American and European Cups in order to meet the Olympic eligibility criteria. However, the team did not obtain the physical standards set by the national federation Sliding Sports Australia and were therefore not nominated to the Australian Olympic Committee for selection to the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

The inclusion of monobob in the Olympic program for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics presented new opportunities. Walker seized this chance by winning the inaugural women's Monobob World Series races in Lillehammer in November 2018. She also continued to compete in the two-woman bobsleigh, achieving notable placements in European Cups and making her World Cup debut in January 2019.

The COVID-19 pandemic Walker chose to base herself in Germany with her former partner, German bobsledder Christian Hammers and trained out of Landesstützpunkt in Frankfurt and Wiesbaden with worked her former Physical/Push coach Tim Restle. Tim Restle. She moved to Frankfurt with her former partner, German bobsledder Christian Hammers and trained at the Landesstützpunkt Wiesbaden, where she had worked with her former Physical/Push coach Tim Restle; whom she worked with since the summer of 2018.

Her dedication bore fruit in the 2020–21 season, with victories in the Monobob World Series and top-ten finishes in the two-woman bobsleigh alongside brakewoman Sarah Blizzard. This season Walker finished second in the overall Monobob World Series ranking and eighth in the overall Two Woman Bobsleigh World Cup rankings.

At the Beijing Olympic Winter Games 2022, Walker achieved a historic fifth-place finish in the women's monobob, marking Australia's best Olympic bobsleigh result. She also competed in the two-woman event with Kiara Reddingius, finishing 16th.^[1]

After the 2022 Winter Olympics, Walker enhanced her coaching team by appointing Canadian Olympic and World Champion Pierre Lueders as head coach, Florian Linder as push coach, Will Morgan as physical coach and relocating her training base to Calgary, Canada.

In the 2022/23 season Walker went on to win her first Monobob World Cup medals; as Monobob became part of the World Cup Circuit. She also placed fourth at the 2023 Monobob World Championships in St Mortiz, Switzerland, achieving Australia's highest World Championship placing.

In the 2023/24 season Walker teamed up again with her Olympic Brakemen, Kiara Reddingius; after Reddingius took a year away from the sport . Walker went on to achieve multiple monobob medals that season as well as multiple top 5 winning performances with Reddingius. At the 2024 World Championships in Winterberg, Germany Walker placed fourth in the Monobob event and fifth in the Two Women event with Reddingius; historical performances for Australia in both events. She rounded out the season with her first Monobob World Cup win in Lake Placid, New York USA. This resulted in Walker finishing second in the overall Monobob World Cup Ranking, as well as finishing sixth in the overall Two Women Bobsleigh ranking.

Personal life

Walker attended St Marys Primary School, Victoria and Mount Lilydale Mercy College, Victoria, where she was appointed Sports Prefect in her final year of secondary education.

After she graduated secondary school she returned to complete a gap year as the AFL traineeship at Mount Lilydale.

Walker began her tertiary education at RMIT University in 2012 studying a Bachelor of Health and Physical Education. However due to her athletic training and competition commitments she transferred to [Deakin University]].^[2]^[3] in 2016 and graduated with a Bachelor of Health and Physical Education in 2019.

Walker currently splits her time between of Cairns, Australia and Calgary, Canada

References

^ "Poor final run ruins Aussie bobsleigh dream". wwos.nine.com.au. 19 February 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
^ "The 2022 Olympic Winter Games have come to an end: congratulations to our Deakin elite-athlete students!". Deakin Life. Deakin University. 21 February 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
^ "Elite Athlete Program Profiles". Deakin University. Retrieved 13 March 2022.

External links

[1] "Poor final run ruins Aussie bobsleigh dream". wwos.nine.com.au. 19 February 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2022.

[2] "The 2022 Olympic Winter Games have come to an end: congratulations to our Deakin elite-athlete students!". Deakin Life. Deakin University. 21 February 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2024.

[3] "Elite Athlete Program Profiles". Deakin University. Retrieved 13 March 2022.

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[3]

@@ Line 25: / Line 25: @@
 * Update as of 25 December, 2024
 }}
+'''Breeana "Bree" Walker''' born on August 28, 1992, in Mount Evelyn, Melbourne, Australia, is a distinguished Australian Bobsleigh pilot who transitioned from a track and field career to make history in the winter sport for Australia.
-'''Breeana "Bree" Walker''' (born 28 August 1992) is an Australian Bobsleigh Pilot. She started as a 400m runner/ 400m hurdler and switched to bobsleigh in 2016. In the 2018/19 season she made her debut in the Bobsleigh World Cup. Since she has gone on to win multiple Monobob World Cup medals as well as finishing fifth in the 2022 Winter Olympics in the Monobob and fourth place in the 2023 and 2024 the Monobob World Championships.
 ==Career==
 ===Beginnings in Track and Field and switching to Bobsleigh===
+Walker began her athletic journey specialising in sprint and mid distance events before tunnelling her focus towards 400-meter hurdles. In her senior years of athletics, she competed for Doncaster Athletic Club, under the watchful eye of her coach Tom Kelly. She clinched the Victoria 400m hurdle state championship in 2013, which earned her a full track and field scholarship to the [[University of Arkansas]] at [[Little Rock]]. However, after a year, she returned to Australia, feeling that the U.S. training emphasis on muscle mass had adversely affected her performance. Back home, she trained under Peter Fortune, renowned for coaching Olympic champion Cathy Freeman.
-Walker comes from the [[Melbourne]] suburb of [[Mount Evelyn, Victoria|Mount Evelyn]]. She began her sporting career as a Track and Field athlete. She specialized in the running disciplines, particularly the 400-meter hurdles. After graduating high school, she trained at Doncaster Athletic Club and became Victoria's champion in the 400m hurdles in 2013. In 2013, Walker received a full Track and Field scholarship to the [[University of Arkansas]] at [[Little Rock]]. After one year of training over season she did not match the times she ran in Australia as the focus in US training was on building muscle mass, and the weight gain was a detriment to her performance. Upon her return to Australia, she was coached by Peter Fortune, [[Cathy Freeman]]'s longtime coach.<ref name="gruner">{{cite web|author=Heike Gruner|url=https://eintracht-wiesbaden.de/2020/09/vom-anderen-ende-der-welt-zur-eintracht/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026063659/https://eintracht-wiesbaden.de/2020/09/vom-anderen-ende-der-welt-zur-eintracht/ |archive-date=26 October 2020 |url-status=live|title=Vom anderen Ende der Welt zur Eintracht|website=eintracht-wiesbaden.de|date=18 September 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://lrtrojans.com/sports/xctf/roster/bree-walker/2175 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://lrtrojans.com/sports/xctf/roster/bree-walker/2175 |archive-date=11 February 2022 |url-status=live|title=Profile of Bree Walker|publisher=Little Rock Trojans|accessdate=27 December 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
+===Transition to Bobsleigh===
-In 2016, Walker decided to switch to Bobsleigh because she had set herself the goal of participating in the Olympics and had doubts about qualifying as a Track and Field athlete.<ref name="hill">{{cite web|author=Daniel Hill|url=https://www.womensportaustralia.com.au/2020/06/06/bobsleigh-bree/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200705120442/https://www.womensportaustralia.com.au/2020/06/06/bobsleigh-bree/ |archive-date=5 July 2020 |url-status=live|title=Bobsleigh Bree|website=womensportaustralia.com.au|date=6 June 2020}}</ref> As role models, she named two Australian hurdlers [[Jana Pittman]] and [[Kim Brennan]], who had also changed sports;<ref name="hill"/><ref>{{cite web|author=Jodie Symonds|url=https://rangestrader.mailcommunity.com.au/mail/2016-10-20/one-more-hurdle-then-its-all-downhill/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://rangestrader.mailcommunity.com.au/mail/2016-10-20/one-more-hurdle-then-its-all-downhill/ |archive-date=11 February 2022 |url-status=live|title=One more hurdle then it's all downhill.|publisher=Ranges Trader Star Mail|date=20 October 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Pittman represented Australia as a bobsleigh pilot at the [[2014 Winter Olympics]], Brennan was the 2016 Olympic champion in rowing. [[Sliding Sports Australia]] (SSA) took Walker to the national team after attending a talent camp.<ref>{{cite web|author=Laura Armitage|url=https://www.heraldsun.com.au/leader/outer-east/breeanna-walker-targets-2018-winter-olympics-with-switch-to-bobsleigh-from-hurdling/news-story/5efa67085c66f349a422369833feb563 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.heraldsun.com.au/leader/outer-east/breeanna-walker-targets-2018-winter-olympics-with-switch-to-bobsleigh-from-hurdling/news-story/5efa67085c66f349a422369833feb563 |archive-date=11 February 2022 |url-status=live|title=Breeanna Walker targets 2018 Winter Olympics with switch to bobsleigh from hurdling.|publisher=[[Herald Sun]]|date=12 October 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In October 2016, she completed a self-financed training course to become a bobsleigh pilot at the [[Whistler Sliding Center]] in Canada.<ref name="gruner"/>
+In 2016, driven by her Olympic aspirations and inspired by athletes like Jana Pittman and Kim Brennan, Walker switched to bobsleigh. She joined the national team through a talent camp organized by Sliding Sports Australia and self-funded her pilot training at the Whistler Sliding Center in Canada.
-In the 2017–18 season, Walker competed with brakewomen Mikayla Dunn and Ashleigh Werner in the 2nd division series of the North American and European Cups in order to meet the Olympic eligibility criteria, finishing five events on three different tracks. However, the team did not obtain the physical standards set by the national federation (Sliding Sports Australia) and were therefore not nominated to the Australian Olympic Committee for selection to the [[2018 Winter Olympics]] in [[Pyeongchang]].
+===Bobsleigh Career===
-===World Cup success (since 2018)===
+In the 2017–18 season, Walker competed with brakewomen Mikayla Dunn and [[Ashleigh Werner]] in the North American and European Cups in order to meet the Olympic eligibility criteria. However, the team did not obtain the physical standards set by the national federation [[Sliding Sports Australia]] and were therefore not nominated to the Australian Olympic Committee for selection to the [[2018 Winter Olympics]] in [[Pyeongchang]].
+The inclusion of monobob in the Olympic program for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics presented new opportunities. Walker seized this chance by winning the inaugural women's Monobob World Series races in Lillehammer in November 2018. She also continued to compete in the two-woman bobsleigh, achieving notable placements in European Cups and making her World Cup debut in January 2019.
+The COVID-19 pandemic Walker chose to base herself in Germany with her former partner, German bobsledder Christian Hammers and trained out of Landesstützpunkt in Frankfurt and Wiesbaden with worked her former Physical/Push coach Tim Restle. Tim Restle. She moved to [[Frankfurt]] with her former partner, German bobsledder Christian Hammers and trained at the Landesstützpunkt Wiesbaden, where she had worked with her former Physical/Push coach Tim Restle; whom she worked with since the summer of 2018.
-In the summer of 2018, the [[International Olympic Committee]] decided to include monobob in the Olympic program from 2022 as the second discipline in women's bobsleigh.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ibsf.org/de/news/20700-frauen-monobob-wird-2022-in-peking-olympische-disziplin |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.ibsf.org/de/news/20700-frauen-monobob-wird-2022-in-peking-olympische-disziplin |archive-date=11 February 2022 |url-status=live|title=Frauen-Monobob wird 2022 in Peking olympische Disziplin|website=ibsf.org|date=18 July 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Walker later described the appearance of the monobob as a "great opportunity", the use of standardized material also gave smaller nations the opportunity to compete at the front.<ref name="gruner" /> She won the first women's Monobob World Series races in [[Lillehammer]] on 4 and 5 November 2018 <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ibsf.org/de/news/8-bobsleigh/20841-australierin-breeana-walker-gewinnt-erste-frauen-monobob-rennen |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.ibsf.org/de/news/8-bobsleigh/20841-australierin-breeana-walker-gewinnt-erste-frauen-monobob-rennen |archive-date=11 February 2022 |url-status=live|title=Australierin Breeana Walker gewinnt erste Frauen-Monobob-Rennen|website=ibsf.org|date=5 November 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Two months later, she scored two third-place finishes with Jamie Scroop as a two-woman bobsleigh brake in the European Cup. The duo made their World Cup debut in mid-January 2019 and finished 13th in Innsbruck-Igls. In the winter of 2019/20, Walker won three more Monobob World Series medals on the [[Königssee bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track|Königssee]] and [[La Plagne]] tracks. She also competed in other World Cup competitions with her new teammates Sarah Blizzard and Stefanie Preiksa; with Preiksa, she finished 14th [[IBSF World Championships 2020 – Two-woman|two-woman event]] at the 2020 World Championships in Altenberg.
+Her dedication bore fruit in the 2020–21 season, with victories in the Monobob World Series and top-ten finishes in the two-woman bobsleigh alongside brakewoman Sarah Blizzard. This season Walker finished second in the overall Monobob World Series ranking and eighth in the overall Two Woman Bobsleigh World Cup rankings.
-Due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]] and Australia's strict quarantine regulations, Walker made the decision to stay in Germany after the 2019/20 season to continue her training. She moved to [[Frankfurt]] with her former partner, German bobsledder Christian Hammers and trained at the Landesstützpunkt Wiesbaden, where she had worked with her former Physical/Push coach Tim Restle; whom she worked with since the summer of 2018. <ref name="gruner" /> In December 2020, she won the second race of the Monobob World Series 2020–21 in Innsbruck-Igls. The competition was the first Monobob race to take place at the same location as the World Cup event in two-woman bobsleigh,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sport.de/news/ne4276767/wintersport-bob-skepsis-ueberwiegt-bei-monobob-premiere/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.sport.de/news/ne4276767/wintersport-bob-skepsis-ueberwiegt-bei-monobob-premiere/ |archive-date=11 February 2022 |url-status=live|title=Wintersport Bob: Skepsis überwiegt bei Monobob-Premiere|website=auf sport.de|date=13 December 2020|language=de}}{{cbignore}}</ref> in which the Walker/Blizzard duo finished eighth and thus achieving the teams first top ten result in the event. At the end of January 2021, Walker won a second Monobob race in Innsbruck-Igls; again against a full World Cup field. She finished second in the overall Monobob World Series ranking. After many top ten results with Blizzard, the team placed eighth in the overall Two Woman Bobsleigh World Cup rankings.
-At the Beijing Olympic Winter Games 2022, she placed 5th in the Women's Monobob Event. She and [[Kiara Reddingius]] were placed 16th in the two-person bobsleigh.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Poor final run ruins Aussie bobsleigh dream|url=https://wwos.nine.com.au/olympics/beijing-winter-olympics-2022-two-woman-bobsleigh-breeana-walker-kiara-reddingius-result-who-won/b49c3464-788e-4ac6-b789-2621ccdd007c|access-date=2022-02-20|website=wwos.nine.com.au|date=19 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref>
+At the Beijing Olympic Winter Games 2022, Walker achieved a historic fifth-place finish in the women's monobob, marking Australia's best Olympic bobsleigh result. She also competed in the two-woman event with [[Kiara Reddingius]], finishing 16th.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Poor final run ruins Aussie bobsleigh dream|url=https://wwos.nine.com.au/olympics/beijing-winter-olympics-2022-two-woman-bobsleigh-breeana-walker-kiara-reddingius-result-who-won/b49c3464-788e-4ac6-b789-2621ccdd007c|access-date=2022-02-20|website=wwos.nine.com.au|date=19 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref>
-After the 2022 Winter Olympics Walker hired Canadian Olympic and World Champion [[Pierre Lueders]] as her teams head coach. She then decided to hire former Canadian Bobsledder Florian Linder as her Push Coach and Australian Strength and Conditioning trainer, Will Morgan as her Physical Coach. The decision also resulted in her moving her training base to Calgary, Canada.
+After the 2022 Winter Olympics, Walker enhanced her coaching team by appointing Canadian Olympic and World Champion [[Pierre Lueders]] as head coach, Florian Linder as push coach, Will Morgan as physical coach and relocating her training base to Calgary, Canada.
-In the 2022/23 season Walker went on to win her first Monobob World Cup medals; as Monobob became part of the World Cup Circuit. She also placed fourth at the 2023 Monobob World Championships in St Mortiz, Switzerland, achieving Australia's highest World Championship placing.
 [[File:Bree Walker and Kiara Reddingius Two Woman World Championships 2024.jpg|thumb|Bree Walker and Kiara Reddingius Two Woman World Championships 2024]]
 [[File:Bree Walker Monobob World Championship 2024.jpg|thumb|Bree Walker Monobob World Championship 2024]]
+In the 2022/23 season Walker went on to win her first Monobob World Cup medals; as Monobob became part of the World Cup Circuit. She also placed fourth at the 2023 Monobob World Championships in St Mortiz, Switzerland, achieving Australia's highest World Championship placing.
-In the 2023/24 season Walker teamed up again with her Olympic Brakemen, Kiara Reddingius. Walker went on to achieve multiple monobob medals that season as well as multiple top 5 winning performances with Reddingius. At the 2024 World Championships in Winterberg, Germany Walker placed fourth in the Monobob event and fifth in the Two Women event with Reddingius. She rounded out the season with her first Monobob World Cup win in Lake Placid, New York USA. This also resulted in Walker finishing second in the overall Monobob World Cup Ranking and sixth in the overall Two Women Bobsleigh ranking.
+In the 2023/24 season Walker teamed up again with her Olympic Brakemen, Kiara Reddingius; after Reddingius took a year away from the sport . Walker went on to achieve multiple monobob medals that season as well as multiple top 5 winning performances with Reddingius. At the 2024 World Championships in Winterberg, Germany Walker placed fourth in the Monobob event and fifth in the Two Women event with Reddingius; historical performances for Australia in both events. She rounded out the season with her first Monobob World Cup win in Lake Placid, New York USA. This resulted in Walker finishing second in the overall Monobob World Cup Ranking, as well as finishing sixth in the overall Two Women Bobsleigh ranking.
@@ Line 59: / Line 62: @@
 After she graduated secondary school she returned to complete a gap year as the AFL traineeship at Mount Lilydale.
 Walker began her tertiary education at RMIT University in 2012 studying a Bachelor of Health and Physical Education. However due to her athletic training and competition commitments she transferred to [Deakin University]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The 2022 Olympic Winter Games have come to an end: congratulations to our Deakin elite-athlete students! |url=https://blogs.deakin.edu.au/deakinlife/2022/02/21/the-2022-olympic-winter-games-has-come-to-a-close-congratulations-to-our-deakin-elite-athlete-students/ |website=Deakin Life |date=21 February 2022 |publisher=Deakin University |access-date=29 August 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Elite Athlete Program Profiles |url=https://www.deakin.edu.au/students/get-involved/elite-athlete-program-profiles |publisher=Deakin University |access-date=13 March 2022}}</ref> in 2016 and graduated with a Bachelor of Health and Physical Education in 2019.