Australia's Skeleton Development athletes have made a promising start to the season, with Ami Wallace taking the bronze medal in a Europa Cup event in Igls, Austria.
 
Team-mate Teniele Richards also made the top ten, finishing in ninth place in the 33-woman field.
 
Competing in her first European event, Wallace posted a total time of 1 minute 59.51 for the two-run event, and encouragingly delivered the fastest push time in both outings.
 
The 20-year-old Mackay slider - who celebrated her birthday a day earlier - was 1.84 seconds slower down the track than Germany's Kathleen Lorenz who recorded one minute 57.67 seconds. Swiss slider Jessica Killen took the silver medal in 1:58.48
 
Richards, also making her Europa Cup debut, was 3.1 seconds behind the race winner.
 
OWI-AIS head coach Terry Holland called the result "particularly impressive", given the quantity of Intercontinental Cup level athletes and the level of experience of the opposition.
 
Wallace and Richards are still rookie sliders, boasting just seven America's Cup starts between them before Igls.
 
The Development team will contest the next event in Konigssee, Germany, on November 30, with the World Cup team of Melissa Hoar, Emma Lincoln-Smith and Michelle Steele lining up a day earlier for the opening event of the season in Calgary.