Bronwyn Thompson
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Bronwyn Thompson (born 29 January 1978 in
Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. In the , the population of Rockhampton was 79,293. A common nickname for Rockhampton is "Rocky", and the demonym of Rockhampton is Rockhamptonite. The Scottish- ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
) is an Australian former
long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...
er. She was the former Commonwealth record holder and holds the Australian record for the long jump. She has been ranked as high as number two in the world. Her greatest achievements include winning gold in the long jump at the
2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006, were an International sport, international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Melbourne ...
and placing fourth at the
2004 Olympic Games The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...
. However, Thompson suffered numerous injury setbacks during her career and retired at the end of the 2008/09 Australian domestic seasonBronwyn Thompson retires
/ref> Thompson was born in
Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. In the , the population of Rockhampton was 79,293. A common nickname for Rockhampton is "Rocky", and the demonym of Rockhampton is Rockhamptonite. The Scottish- ...
as the youngest of four children and moved to her current home of
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
during primary school. As a child she excelled at both athletics and
volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
, but eventually chose to focus on athletics. She missed selection on the Australian team for the long jump at the 1996 World Junior Championships, which resulted in her decision to take a break from athletics and concentrate on her studies.Leaps and bounds
/ref> After completing a degree in physiotherapy Thompson returned to athletics in 2000, and later that year represented Australia in the long jump at the
2000 Olympic Games The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...
in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, narrowly missing a place in the final. In 2001, her performances continued to improve, and she broke the Australian long jump record, previously held by Nicole Boegman. In 2002, Thompson improved her Australian record with a jump of 7.00m, which remains her personal best. She was again restricted by injury at the
2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002, were an international multi-sport event for the members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Manchester, England, ...
in
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
, finishing sixth in the long jump despite going in as the favourite. At the 2003 World Championships in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, Thompson finished seventh in the final, despite further injury concerns. Thompson carried good form into the
2004 Olympic Games The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...
in
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
and produced a best jump of 6.96m, but narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing fourth behind a trio of Russian athletes. A week later, however Thompson suffered a horrific knee injury at a meet in
Rieti Rieti (; , Sabino: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, with a population of 47,700. It is the administrative seat of the province of Rieti and see of the diocese of Rieti, as well as the modern capital of the Sabina region. T ...
,
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, which threatened to end her career. It took more than a year for her to return to competition, but at the
2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006, were an International sport, international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Melbourne ...
in
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
she was able to once again produce her best form and dominated the long jump to win gold with a leap of 6.97m. Bronwyn went on to represent Australia at both the 2007 World Championships and the
2008 Olympic Games The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fr ...
, but was unable to qualify for the final at either event. Thompson has continued to practice as a pediatric
physiotherapist Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...
in addition to her athletics career, as well as serving as a director of Athletics Australia via her position as chairperson of the Athletes Commission. She has been coached by Gary Bourne since 2000, was married to husband Jason Chipperfield in 2006 and has had 4 children (Jacob Chipperfield, Isabelle Chipperfield).


Achievements


References


External links

*
Athletics Australia profileOfficial website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Bronwyn 1978 births Living people Australian female long jumpers Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia Goodwill Games medalists in athletics Competitors at the 2001 Goodwill Games Athletes from Brisbane Sportswomen from Queensland Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Australian physiotherapists Australian Athletics Championships winners 21st-century Australian sportswomen Commonwealth Games gold medallists in athletics