Kya
Placide

Age20

Kya Placide joined the British Bobsleigh programme in the summer of 2023 and has since gone on to become a leading figure with the women’s team.

Kya made her international debut in December 2024 - less than two months after her 19th birthday and only a matter of weeks after stepping into a bobsleigh on ice for the very first time.

She tasted immediate success, winning Europa Cup bronze with Adele Nicoll in her first ever race in Lillehammer.

A World Cup debut followed in Igls just a fortnight later when she finished 15th with Nikki McSweeney and her next race featured another medal as she celebrated EC gold with Nicoll in St Moritz in January 2024. That victory was the first for a British women’s team since 2017, with Placide playing a key part after powering the team to the fastest start in each heat.

Placide made the team for the World Championships in her maiden season, going on to place 11th with Nicoll in Winterberg, and she ended her debut campaign on a major high with World Cup silver in Lake Placid. That medal was just the second won by a British women’s team in 15 years and it came in what was just Placide’s fourth World Cup competition.

Kya’s route to bobsleigh came through athletics, with a particular focus on the shorter sprint distances. She represented Wales and won 60m bronze at the Welsh Indoor Championships in 2023.

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