Breeana Walker
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Australian |
| Born | 28 August 1992 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 |
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.
Early Life and Athletics Career
Breeana "Bree" Walker was born on 28 August 1992 in Mount Evelyn, Melbourne, Australia. She began her athletic career specializing in sprint and middle-distance events before focusing on the 400-meter hurdles. As a member of Doncaster Athletic Club, coached by Tom Kelly, Walker won the Victoria 400m hurdles state championship in 2013, earning her a full track and field scholarship to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. However, she returned to Australia after one year, feeling that the U.S. training's emphasis on muscle mass had hindered her performance. Back home, she trained under Peter Fortune, renowned for coaching Olympic champion Cathy Freeman. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
Transition to Bobsleigh
In 2016, inspired by athletes such as Jana Pittman and Kim Brennan, Walker transitioned to bobsleigh to achieve her Olympic dreams. She joined the national team through Sliding Sports Australia's talent camp and self-funded her pilot training at the Whistler Sliding Center in Canada. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}
Bobsleigh Career
Walker debuted in the 2017–18 season, competing in North American and European Cups with brakewomen Mikayla Dunn and Ashleigh Werner. Despite their efforts, the team did not qualify for the 2018 Winter Olympics. However, with the inclusion of monobob in the 2022 Olympic program, Walker capitalized on the opportunity, winning the inaugural women's Monobob World Series races in Lillehammer in November 2018. :contentReference[oaicite:2]{index=2}
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Walker relocated to Germany to continue training. Her hard work paid off in the 2020–21 season, securing victories in the Monobob World Series and top-ten finishes in the two-woman bobsleigh with brakewoman Sarah Blizzard. At the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, she achieved a historic fifth-place finish in the women's monobob and placed 16th in the two-woman event with Kiara Reddingius. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3}
Post-Olympics, Walker appointed Pierre Lueders as head coach, Florian Linder as push coach, and Will Morgan as physical coach, moving her training base to Calgary, Canada. In the 2022–23 season, she earned her first Monobob World Cup medals and a fourth-place finish at the 2023 Monobob World Championships in St. Moritz. :contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4}
In the 2023–24 season, Walker reunited with Reddingius, earning multiple monobob medals and top-five finishes in two-woman events. At the 2024 World Championships in Winterberg, she placed fourth in monobob and fifth in the two-woman event. Her historic Monobob World Cup win in Lake Placid marked the first such achievement by an Australian. :contentReference[oaicite:5]{index=5}
Personal Life
Walker attended St. Mary’s Primary School and Mount Lilydale Mercy College, where she served as Sports Prefect. After graduating, she completed a gap year as an AFL trainee at Mount Lilydale. She began her tertiary studies at RMIT University in 2012 but later transferred to Deakin University, graduating in 2019 with a Bachelor of Health and Physical Education. Walker splits her time between Cairns, Australia, and Calgary, Canada.
References
- ABC News: Bree Walker's Historic Win
- Olympics Australia: Bree Walker
- Olympic Winter Institute of Australia: Bree Walker
- Olympics.com: Breeana Walker Profile
- Liana Buratti: How Bree Walker Became Australia's Most Successful Bobsledder