Australian bobsleigh star Bree Walker produced a dominant display to win the monobob World Cup in Lillehammer, posting the fastest times in both heats to control the field from start to finish.
The win is Walker’s fourth career World Cup victory and further cements her outstanding record on the iconic 1994 Olympic track, where she has now claimed three consecutive World Cup race wins.
Walker laid the foundation with her strongest push starts of the season, ranking third in both heats, before delivering runs of 53.86 and 54.02 seconds to stop the clock at a combined winning time of 1:47.88.
Austria’s Katrin Beierl finished second in 1:48.32, 0.44 seconds behind Walker, while Germany’s Laura Nolte claimed third with 1:48.36.
“It was a great race today, I was really happy with both runs and both pushes, it was probably one of the best races I’ve done,” said the 33-year-old Waker from Queensland.
“I really enjoy Lillehammer, we spend a lot of time here in preseason, so it feels like coming home each time we come back. I enjoy the little nuances of the track and being able to put that all together in a run. Often I know I have done a fast run before I’ve even crossed the line if I’ve been able to execute certain parts of the track.
“The competition is so tough, we’re going be jumping around all year in the rankings, but I am happy to be currently sitting second after the third race and we will just keep taking things race by race. “
After three events, Walker sits second in the monobob World Cup standings with 617 points, just 18 behind Nolte on 635, with Lisa Buckwitz also of Germany in third with 568 points.
The Lillehammer World Cup continues tomorrow with the two-woman bobsleigh event, where Walker will team up with brakewoman Kiara Reddingius.
