Hannah Campbell-Pegg named as Bland Shire Australia Day Ambassador
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Dual Olympian Hannah Campbell-Pegg will be the guest of honour at the Lions Club breakfast and Bland Shire Australia Day awards in Barnado Park on Friday 26 January.
The Australian Day Council of New South Wales recently announced the recently retired luge racer as Bland Shire’s official Australia Day Ambassador.
Ms Campbell-Pegg is one of only three Australians to compete at the Winter Olympics in the sport of luge and the only one of the trio to represent at two Olympics.
The French word for sled, luge sees athletes propel themselves feet first down an ice track with up to 21 corners at speeds of 150 kilometres per hour. The body experiences forces up to five times that of gravity with the only protection being a helmet.
With no luge track or even an artificial track anywhere in Australia, Ms Campbell-Pegg has her own version of the hit movie “Cool Runnings” to share with a patriotic Bland Shire crowd on Australia Day.
She started her international sporting career with the Australian women’s bobsleigh team in 2002 before making the bold switch to luge in 2004 where in typical Australian style she beat the odds and silenced the doubters by going on to represent Australia at the Winter Olympics in Torino in 2006 and Vancouver in 2010. She finished 23rd on both occasions.
While training and competing all over the world, Ms Campbell-Pegg also completed degrees in sports science and teaching and has gone on to forge a successful career as both a sports administrator and in the corporate world.
As well as the Australian fight and spirit, Ms Campbell-Pegg also shares the Bland Shire spirit of compassion and charity.
Just a couple of days out from her competition at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, Georgian slider Nodar Kumaritashvili was tragically killed in training on the Olympic track. After the Olympics, Ms Campbell-Pegg auctioned her one-of-a-kind Australian Olympics luge suit to raise money for the grieving family.
She will deliver an Australia Day address at the Lions breakfast and Bland Shire awards in Barnado Park on 26 January. Once her travel itinerary is confirmed Council is hopeful Ms Campbell-Pegg will also visit some of the village celebrations.