Brittany Starr Bowe (born February 24, 1988) is an American speed skater and former inline skater and basketball player. She has won eight gold, one silver, and two bronze medals from the world inline speedskating championships. From her junior years, she has another 21 world championship medals. She also has a gold medal from the combined sprint event in roller skating at the 2007 Pan American Games.
In speed skating, she has specialized in the 500, 1000 and 1500 meters, and she won the bronze medal on the 1000 meters distance in the 2013 World Single Distance Championships. In the 2015 World Single Distance Championships, she won the gold medal on the same distance, as well as another gold medal in the 1500 meters, and the silver medal in the 500 meters. Two weeks later, she also won the 2015 World Sprint Championships, winning all four races along the way. She has two bronze medals, from the 2018 and 2022 Olympics.
For her performance in the 1000 metres competition of the Single Distance Championships, Bowe was awarded the 2015 Oscar Mathisen Award.
Bowe is the current world record holder in the 1000 meters distance, and has previously held the 1500 meters world record, in which distance she holds the American record.
Early life Bowe was born in Ocala, Florida, to Michael and Deborah Bowe (née Starr), and grew up practicing several sports from an early age, including basketball and soccer. At the age of 2, she would give dribbling exhibitions at halftime of college basketball games. Though making it to a statewide under-13 boys travel team in soccer, she gave that sport up, because of overlapping seasons with basketball.
She attended the Trinity Catholic High School in Ocala, and then Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, where she played basketball for the Florida Atlantic Owls. She graduated in 2010, majoring in sociology and social science.
Inline speed skating
In 1996, at the age of 8, Bowe began inline skating. She competed at increasingly higher levels, ultimately participating in world championships from 2002 to 2008, where she won 32 medals altogether. At the senior level, Bowe made her debut at the 2008 World Inline Speed Skating Championships in Gijón, Spain, where she was selected for the U.S. national team after qualifying at the 2008 Inline Speed Skating National Championships in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Bowe is a 13-time medalist at the World Single Distances Championships (four gold, four silver, and five bronze). She has won medals four times at the World Sprint Championships (two gold, one silver, one bronze). Beyond the world championships, Bowe represented the United States at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, where she won a gold medal in the combined sprint event in roller sports.
After the 2008 world championships in inline speed skating, Bowe shifted focus to her basketball career, playing as a point guard for the Florida Atlantic Owls. Watching former inline skating contemporaries Chad Hedrick and Heather Richardson compete at the 2010 Winter Olympics, she was inspired to transition to speed skating and moved to Salt Lake City in 2010 to pursue the sport full time.
Basketball After the 2008 world championships in inline speed skating, Bowe focused on her basketball game, playing as a point guard for the Florida Atlantic Owls.
Florida Atlantic statistics Source
YearTeamGPPointsFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG2006–07Florida Atlantic3016132.4%28.1%56.4%2.20.91.00.15.42007–08Florida Atlantic2824429.2%26.9%62.5%3.34.11.50.18.72008–09Florida Atlantic2931633.8%11.4%72.0%3.93.72.1 -10.92009–10Florida Atlantic2935440.3%12.5%70.0%4.14.71.70.012.2Career116107534.2%21.7%67.0%3.33.31.60.09.3
Speed skating
Watching friends from the inline years, such as Chad Hedrick and Heather Richardson, participating in the 2010 Winter Olympics, Bowe decided to pause her basketball career, and moved to Salt Lake City in 2010 to take up speed skating.
She soon enjoyed success, and on January 19 and 20, 2013, she earned her first podium placings in the ISU Speed Skating World Cup, finishing third in both races over the 1000 metres distance at the World Cup stop in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Six weeks later, on March 3, she won her first World Cup gold medal in the 1000 metres at the World Cup stop in Erfurt, Germany. Overall, she finished second in the women's 1000 metres World Cup, after Heather Richardson.
On March 23, 2013, Bowe won her first world championship medal in speed skating, a bronze, in the women's 1000 metres distance of the World Single Distance Championships, finishing behind Olga Fatkulina of Russia and Ireen Wüst of the Netherlands.
On November 17, 2013, Bowe set a new world record on 1000 meters with a time of 1:12.58 in the World Cup stop in Salt Lake City. Over the 2013–14 World Cup season, she collected a total of five podium placings in the 1000 metres World Cup, one gold, three silver, and one bronze medal, for an overall silver medal, behind Heather Richardson. In the 1500 metres World Cup, Bowe collected one gold, one silver, and one bronze medal, for an overall bronze medal, behind Dutch skaters Ireen Wüst and Lotte van Beek.
The 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, was somewhat of a disappointment, with Bowe finishing 13th in the 500 metres, 8th in the 1000 metres, and 14th in the 1500 metres.
In the 2015 World Single Distance Championships, she won gold medals in the 1000 and 1500 meters, and a silver in the 500 meters. She also won the 2015 World Sprint Championships.
Over the 2014–15 World Cup season, Bowe collected four podium placings, three silver and one bronze, for an overall 5th place in the 500 metres World Cup, five podium placings, three gold and two silver, for an overall win in 1000 metres World Cup, and three podium placings, one gold and two silver, for an overall bronze medal in the 1500 metres World Cup.
Bowe competed in the 500m, 1000m , and 1500m individual events at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics. She earned a bronze medal in the team pursuit event.
In 2022 Olympic qualifications for the United States speed skating team, fellow speed skater and longtime friend to Bowe, Erin Jackson, slipped during the 500m race. Though Bowe had earned a qualification spot for this distance, she gave up her spot to Jackson, as Jackson was considered a favorite. Jackson went on to win the gold medal in the 2022 Olympics for this event. Bowe was selected to be a flag bearer for the United States during the opening ceremony after the original bearer, Elana Meyers Taylor, tested positive for COVID-19. Bowe earned a bronze medal in the 1000m event.
Prior to the 2026 Olympics, Bowe announced that they would be her last. She competed in the 1000m, 1500m, and team pursuit events, finishing fourth in all three events.
Records Personal records
World records
Results timeline Season World Sprint World SD World Cup Olympic Games 2011–12 18th 16th 2x500 m8th 1000 m 20th 500 m10th 1000 m31st 1500 m Not held 2012–13 8th 14th 2x500 m 1000 m 15th 500 m 1000 m28th 1500 m 2013–14 Did notparticipate Not held 11th 500 m 1000 m 1500 m3rd GWC 13th 2x500 m8th 1000 m14th 1500 m6th team pursuit 2014–15 2x500 m 1000 m 1500 m 5th 500 m 1000 m 1500 m28th mass start3rd GWC Not held 2015–16 2x500 m 1000 m 1500 m Not held 2017-2018 5th 500m 4th 1000m
5th 1500m Team Pursuit 2021-2022 Did notparticipate 1000 m 1500 m 1000 m 1500 m1000m 10th 1500m 2024–25 Did notparticipate 15th, 7th 500 m5th, , 5th, 6th 1000 m6th, 6th, 11th, 11th 1500 m, Team pursuitNot held 2025–26 5th, 5th, 4th, 4th, 4th 1000 m6th, , 4th, 5th, 5th 1500 m, 4th, Team pursuit 4th 1000m 4th 1500m4th Team Pursuit
World Cup overall trophy Season 1000 meter Points 1500 meter Points 2015–2016 710 590 2018–2019 397 378 2019–2020 326 colspan=2 2020–2021 120 120 2021–2022 330 256 2023–2024 297 rowspan=3 colspan=2 2024–2025 256 2025–2026 209
Personal life Bowe is a lesbianOutsports: At least 35 out LGBTQ athletes in Beijing Winter Olympics, a record, January 2022. and began dating ice hockey player Hilary Knight in 2022. They got engaged during the 2026 Winter Olympics.
References
External links
Brittany Bowe at SpeedSkatingNews Brittany Bowe at U.S. Speedskating