Ashleigh Nelson can’t believe her winter sport whirlwind has ended in selection for the Olympics.
Nelson was staring down the barrel of retirement when she missed out on a place at Paris 2024 in her former life as a track and field sprinter before a phone call changed her life.
Fellow athletics convert Adele Nicoll convinced Nelson to try her hand at bobsleigh and 18 months later the pair are now set to compete together in Milano Cortina 2026.
It is a startling turnaround for the Stoke native, who becomes just the second British woman to compete at both a Summer and Winter Olympics, after Montell Douglas, having made her debut at Beijing 2008 as a teenager.
“I never thought that I would change sport let alone be in the run up to go to an Olympic Games,” she said.
“I didn’t even think that I would be doing anything, I thought I’d be working in an office. I had no idea what was around the corner.
“I can’t believe I am still lucky enough to say that this is my job and I can’t believe I am still at the top.
“The older you get, the more you realise you have one plan but it might turn out another way.
“Before I came to bobsleigh, I thought I was just a sprinter. Doing this has reminded me that actually I can do anything I want, whether that’s bobsleigh or going back to school to study. It was really given me that belief.”
Nelson will turn 35 on the day of the pair’s first race in the two-woman competition in Cortina.
It makes for an interesting dynamic with 29-year-old Nicoll and 21-year-old reserve Kya Placide, with Nelson embracing her role as the wise older head amongst the tightly-bonded group.
“Even if you wanted to be alone in bobsleigh, you can’t. As the older stateswoman, sometimes I need some space!” she joked.
“It has come at just the right time in my life. I have got patience, which at 21 I never had, I’ve got understanding, I’ve got wisdom.
“The girls have taught me everything I know about bobsleigh but actually I have got some things to bring to the table that are life related. It is the perfect balance.
“To be a woman, a woman of colour and a woman of a certain age – on race day I will be 35 – I am really passionate about challenging the norms within sport.
“If my story can inspire other women to go forth and prosper then I am here for it. It’s an exciting story and sometimes I can’t quite believe it’s me who is doing it."
Sportsbeat 2026