Werner leads Aussies to second place
Sydney's Ashleigh Werner has led her Australian women's bobsleigh team to second place overall at the end of the North America Cup in Calgary.
ASHLEIGH Werner has just completed her first international bobsleigh season for Australia since switching from brakeman to pilot in mid-2018, and her results could not have been better.
The 26-year-old Sydney native led her team of rookie brakemen Mikaela Sparre, Natasha Jacobi and Isobel Rennie in all eight races of the North America Cup in the two-woman bobsleigh division between early November and the final round in Calgary last month, securing second position overall in the 18-team international field.
Often reaching top speeds of 140km/h on courses including Whistler, Lake Placid and Park City – in temperatures as low as -30 degrees – her team’s memorable season included a personal best placing of fourth for an individual round [Park City in late November], while delivering impressive consistency by finishing in the top 10 in all eight rounds of the Cup, won by Canada.
Werner told The AJN from Lake Placid last week – where she is attending a post-season camp – she is “incredibly excited” by the overall result.
“Words cannot express the feeling,” Werner said, adding a lot of credit has to go to her teammates, and their coach Bryan Berghorn, “who really believed in us”.
“Moving forward, this gives us some confidence, motivation and a basis for being able to gain some sponsorship.”
Werner also came fourth in her first international mono-bob race.
“It’s an exciting time to be an Aussie in bobsleigh,” Werner said.
SHANE DESIATNIK
Anyone who would like to try women’s bobsleigh, send a message of support, or sponsor Werner’s team, can send an email to bobteamwerner@gmail.com
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