‘Extraordinary’: Aussie Bree Walker hailed as an inspiration at Winter Olympics

An Aussie athlete has broken new ground in Australians sport after a thrilling performance at her first Olympic Games.

Australian bobsleigh athlete Breeana Walker has warned the world to “never count an Aussie out” after finishing fifth in the women’s monobob in her debut Olympic Games.

The achievement has been labelled “extraordinary” and Walker has been hailed as an inspiration.

It comes as the sport debuts in Beijing in a bid for greater equality in medals awarded between the men’s and women's bobsledding events.

The men currently race in the four and two-person events, while the women previously only had the two-person event. The women don’t have a four-person bobsled, while men don’t compete in monobob.

But the women now have the monobob event, which made its debut in Beijing.

“All I can say is never count an Aussie out,” Walker said after her first Olympic event.

“I fought back today and the girls who are out there who were in front of me are the best pilots in the world, so to be fifth behind them at my first Olympics, I’m so chuffed. I’m so happy.

“I wanted to show people that back at home and even people around the world that if you want something bad enough, you have just got to go out there and make it happen.”

Walker’s performance comes hot on the heels of Jaclyn Narracott’s silver medal in the skeleton over the weekend, Australia’s first ever sliding medal.

Aussie Breeana Walker finished fifth in the women's monobob bobsleigh in her first Winter Olympic Games. Picture: François-Xavier Marit / AFP

She has warned the world to never count an Aussie out. Picture: Julian Finney/Getty Images

Walker and her teammates missed out on qualifying for the 2018 Winter Olympics after a controversial decision by the sport’s national governing body not to nominate them to the Australian Olympic Committee to compete at the games.

Walker went to PyeongChang as a spectator but made a promise to herself at the time that she says she has now kept.

“I wanted to be standing here at these Olympics representing Australia, being a competitor, not just a participant and I think I’ve kept that promise to myself, and I’m over the moon,” Walker said.

Walker hails from the Yarra Valley in Victoria but has been based in Germany for the past two years. Picture: Julian Finney/Getty Images

Speaking on Channel 7, former Australian skeleton racer Michelle Steele said Walker was a “true inspiration”.

“Fifth in an Olympic Winter Games. Having an Australian athlete in the top five in the Olympics in this event is a credit to Bree and certainly something to be celebrated,” she said.

Channel 7 commentator Dave Culbert said Walker had a bright future.

“That is an extraordinary achievement for someone so new to this discipline,” he said.

Kaillie Humphries, from the US, won the gold, Elana Meyers Taylor, also from the US, won the silver, and Canadian Christine de Bruin won bronze.