Breiana Whitehead

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Breiana Whitehead
Personal information
NationalityAustralian
Born2000 (age 23–24)
Townsville, Queensland
Sailing career
ClassFormula Kite
Coach
  • Shane Smith[1]
  • Danny Fuller[2]
Competition record
Women's sailing
Representing  Australia
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Lake Garda Formula Kite

Breiana Whitehead (born 2000) is an Olympic kitesurfer from Australia.[3]

Early life

Whitehead was born in Townsville, Queensland,[4] in 2000.[5] She has one younger brother, Scott Whitehead, who is also a kitesurfer.[6] When she was two years old, their father Murray, who is a boat-builder, began to introduce her to sailing,[7] and she began sailing on her own when she was eight years old.[1] She began racing at the age of ten.[2]

Career

2019

Whitehead received a bronze medal in the 2019 Formula Kite World Championships at Lake Garda, Italy, which was her first medal received in an international competition.[8][9]

2020

Alongside her brother Scott, Whitehead competed in the 2020 Australian Kitefoiling Championships in Melbourne. She won the teams, women's, and Open National kitefoiling events,[6] and was ranked sixth overall.[10]

2023

Whitehead competed at the 2023 Formula Kite World Championships in The Hague, Netherlands, where she placed eleventh, earning a berth for Australia at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.[11]

2024

Whitehead was the overall winner of the 53rd Trofeo Princesa Sofia (part of the 2024 Sailing World Cup), receiving the gold medal in Women's Formula Kite. She beat the American Daniela Moroz into second place, and the German Leonie Meyer into third.[12] She finished fifth in the 2024 Formula Kite World Championships in Hyeres, France.[13]

She was the first athlete selected for the Australian team[14] for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris,[13] which will be the first time that kitesurfing is represented as an Olympic sport.[1]

Personal life

In 2022, Whitehead graduated from James Cook University with a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering degree.[1] She designs her own boards.[7][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "'Inspiring' Aussie scientist creates Olympic history". Nine. 20 November 2023. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b "World Sailing - Breiana Whitehead". World Sailing. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Breiana Whitehead - it feels like you're flying on top of the water". ABC listen. 25 November 2023. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  4. ^ Team, Australian Sailing-. "Get to know Kite Foil Racing and Australia's Breiana Whitehead". www.australiansailingteam.com.au. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  5. ^ "Rankings". www.formulakite.org. Archived from the original on 29 May 2024. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  6. ^ a b "'It's not really for everyone': Kite-foiling siblings aim for Paris 2024 Olympics". ABC News. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Diab Case study - Breiana Whitehead – the quest to create the gold-medal-winning board". www.diabgroup.com. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  8. ^ claudiab (14 May 2019). "Formula Kite World Championships 2019, Italy". FLYSURFER. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  9. ^ "Tight racing in perfect conditions at Europeans leaves little to choose between top of order - Welcome to the IKA Formula Kite Class". www.formulakite.org. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  10. ^ Australia, Kiteboarding. "Australian Kitefoiling Championships at Sail Melbourne finished in ideal Melbourne conditions - Results". www.kiteboardingaus.com.au. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  11. ^ "Sailing World Championships 2023, The Hague: IQFoil titles for van Opzeeland and Tibi, as Nolot and Maeder win kite golds". Olympics. 19 August 2023.
  12. ^ Nalwala, Ali Asgar (6 April 2024). "Trofeo Princesa Sofía 2024 sailing: Australia's Breiana Whitehead wins gold medal; Zoe Thomson bags silver". Olympics.
  13. ^ a b "Breiana Whitehead shows she's a strong contender for Paris 2024". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  14. ^ "Olympics medal hopeful Whitehead gets confidence boost with Formula Kite victory at prestigious Spanish event". ABC News. 7 April 2024. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
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