Michaela Breeze was a Wales Commonwealth Games legend, but now Sinead Breeze has her chance to shine. Rob Cole charts the journey of the Wales rugby player from netball write-off to Gold Coast medal hope.
Wales women’s sevens player Sinead Breeze knows exactly what a Commonwealth Games gold medal looks like and what it takes to win one.
There are two in her Swansea home, along with a couple of silvers and a bronze, won by her wife, Michaela, during her record-breaking career as a weightlifter.
Sinead was in Delhi and Glasgow to see her partner complete her medal haul, but now it is her turn to try to add to the family collection.
Sinead has had to battle back from injury to make the Welsh team, having been forced to undergo knee surgery 16 weeks ago. But nothing was going to stop her from turning from supporter to competitor at the Commonwealth Games.
“I was having a problem with one of my knees and at one sevens tournament I woke up and couldn’t move my leg. I managed to get moving, and play through the second day, but then the specialist said I needed an operation,” said Sinead.
“They went in and found a tear in my cartilage and told me it would be 16 weeks before I could play again. I told them I had to be back on the pitch with 10 or 12 weeks.
“It was touch and go, but I made it in the end. Now, I am just excited about taking part in the Commonwealth Games.”
Her wife, Michaela, 38, won weightlifting gold and silver for Wales in Manchester in 2002, gold again in Melbourne four years later and another silver in Delhi in 2010. She crowned her career – which also included two Olympic Games – with a Commonwealth record in the snatch and a bronze medal at the age of 35 in Glasgow four years ago.
And just to underline exactly what it takes to get onto the podium at the Commonwealth’s sporting jamboree, Sinead and her Welsh women’s sevens team mates were last week treated to an inspirational talk by Michaela prior to their departure for the Gold Coast.
“It really hit home to me exactly what Michaela has achieved in her career, and the huge sacrifices she made to reach the top, when she spoke to the squad. I helped her put together a motivational video when she retired, but I hadn’t seen it for quite a while,” explained Sinead.
“It really hit a nerve. Sometimes, when I see her in front of me like that I forget she is my wife, but I know I wouldn’t be where I am today without her inspiration and support.”
Born and raised in Exeter to Irish parents, Sinead’s first sporting love was netball. She played internationally for Northern Ireland age-grade teams, but then suffered a series of serious hip injuries that required operations and was told she would never be able to play the game again.
She threw herself into her studies and in 2012 graduated with a First Class BSc Honours Degree in Applied Psychology with Anatomy and Physiology. But she missed the competitive side of sport and had always harboured a dream of competing at the Commonwealth Games.
📸 #WalesWomen Sevens squad for @OfficialHK7s and #GC2018 pic.twitter.com/70I04Cnwk4
— Welsh Rugby Union 🏉 (@WelshRugbyUnion) March 27, 2018
She took up rugby, put on some muscle bulk, and was immediately spotted by Wales women’s sevens coach, Richie Pugh. She made her Wales debut in a Rugby Europe tournament in September, 2016, and finally reached her dream goal of going to the Games this year.
“I was only 19 when I had to have surgery on both hips. I had three operations in total and the surgeon told me I would never be able to play netball again,” said Sinead, now 28.
“So, I threw myself into my studies and in 2010 I went to Delhi to watch Michaela at the Commonwealth Games. I was still a teenager at the time and, because of the security risks in India, I was given special accreditation to stay close to Michaela and the Welsh team.
“That gave a real, behind the scenes insight into the Commonwealth Games and made me realise something was missing from my life. It heightened my appetite to get back into competitive sport and one-day try to make the Games.
“I was only 49 kilos at the time and when I took up rugby I had to get my weight up to what it is now, 61 kilos. I had a pretty good athletic frame to build on, but I had to put on some proper muscle mass.
“Michaela thought I was mad. She thought I was going to get thrown around and pummelled, but I’ve survived.”
Not only that, she has thrived and grown on the rugby field since moving to live in Wales with Michaela. The couple first met when they were working together on a sports course at Ivybridge College in 2009 and have been together ever since.
They opened the high-spec ‘Breezes’ Gym’ in an old church in Aberdare in 2012, got married at Sinead’s parents’ house in Devon in May, 2015 – “quite simply the best day of my life” – and sold on their business in 2017 before moving to live in Swansea.
Now, they run an on-line sport training business, ‘Breezes’ Operation Transformation’, which is currently helping to change the lives of people from out of condition housewives, middle aged men and international athletes. It also better suits their busy lifestyles.
“We have about 28 clients at the moment and we provide bespoke training regimes for each and every one of them. We work hard to make a difference to their lives and the reaction so far has been fantastic,” added Sinead.
Our new online training & nutrition platform is now LIVE!
Check out our homepage to see what we have to offer 👉https://t.co/R7Eniggv0WHere’s a little motivational introduction video… 💪#operationtransformation #breezetraining #excited pic.twitter.com/vK926zd9iS
— Sinead Breeze (@sineadbreeze) December 11, 2017
“Michaela also works as a commentator on weightlifting and as a specialist Olympic weightlifting business, ‘Power Position’, that provides more specialist services to elite athletes. We’re all over the world at the moment, but the beauty is we can still attend to business from a laptop wherever we are.”
Having followed and supported Michaela at two Commonwealth Games – Delhi in 2010 and Glasgow in 2014 – Sinead will have her wife backing her bid for glory this time.
“She was commentating on the European weightlifting championships in Budapaest and is then going on to the Gold Coast to work there. I’m heading to Dubai with the Welsh squad for the World Series qualifiers and then going on to Australia,” explained Sinead.
“We will finally get to meet up on our first day off on 11 April. We kick-off two days later against the Olympic champions, Australia, in our opening pool games.
“I can’t wait to get started and it will be fantastic to have Michaela there with me. It will also make a change for her to be supporting me at a Commonwealth Games, rather than the other way around!”