Thai bobsleigh teen inspired by idol Humphries while encouraging next generation

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Mar 07, 2025 2:14 PM EST | Last Updated: 4 minutes ago

Agnese Campeol is drafting inspiration from her idol Kaillie Humphries successful a bid to go the archetypal bobsledder to correspond Thailand astatine the Winter Olympics, portion besides inspiring the adjacent procreation herself, contempt her tender years.

Campeol won a metallic medal successful the monobob astatine past year's Winter Youth Olympics, her country's archetypal medal astatine a Winter Olympic event, and the 18-year-old was precocious paired with Humphries successful a mentoring program.

The program, organized by the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation (IBSF), gives Campeol the accidental to enactment with three-times Olympic champion Humphries, who competes for the U.S. having antecedently represented her autochthonal Canada.

"I privation to bid with her if possible," Campeol told Reuters.

"I privation to larn from her much and more, she has thing similar 20 years' experience. When I was calved she was already racing and connected a team.

"She's precise bully to maine and erstwhile I spell to the way with her she gives maine each of her way notes. It's similar a flash of light. It's inspiration."

This weekend, astatine the satellite championships successful Lake Placid, Campeol volition contention against Humphries for the archetypal time, aft the 39-year-old's caller instrumentality to enactment pursuing a maternity break.

Campeol volition past bask a well-deserved interruption aft a engaged play acold from home, wherever she finished 4th wide successful the monobob successful the North American Cup, the highest-placed inferior athlete, earlier enactment begins connected qualifying for the Olympics.

"After the World Championships, I volition person a fewer months off, and past from astir August I spell again until March, traveling each over," Campeol said, having spent precise small clip astatine location successful caller months.

Campeol, who lone discovered bobsleigh astatine the property of 16 and her archetypal competitory races were the 8 qualification races indispensable to marque the Youth Olympics, has different motivating origin to scope adjacent year's Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics.

She was calved successful Italy and lived determination until the property of five, and her Italian begetter is already readying up for a accidental to instrumentality home.

"My begetter said, if I marque it, past they'll bargain immoderate tickets to spell there," Campeol said.

Even earlier the 2026 Olympics, Campeol's emergence to prominence successful specified a abbreviated play of clip is inspiring children successful Thailand and showing them that competing successfully successful wintertime sports for their state is simply a possibility.

"I'm astir to outcry erstwhile I speech astir this," an affectional Campeol said.

"Some kids, galore kids successful my hometown, travel my vocation way and privation to travel this way arsenic well."