Sport
30 January, 2025
Retschlag’s chopping her way to national glory
Kilcoy woodchopper, Renee Retschlag, has been selected for a third consecutive time into the Australian Women’s Woodchopping team.
Renee and the Australian team is set to compete on March 8-9 in Waimate, New Zealand, against the home team.
She said she felt thrilled to be selected again into the Australian team.
“I’ve always been excited when I’ve been selected, I was very happy,” Renee said.
“It’s a good feeling to see that all your hard work is being recognised.
“Representing your country is the pinnacle.”
Although Renee has just come out of her off season, she is starting to prepare for the tour.
“I’ve still been going to the gym everyday but I’ve just started chopping blocks at home and just sawing at home too a couple days a week,” she said.
“As it gets closer, I’ll ramp up my training some more.”
The last time Australia faced up against New Zealand was at the Adelaide Royal Show in September last year and won.
Renee is confident they can bring home a win again.
“Australia won last year and it was the best of three, it was a team relay and we did it over three days and we won all three races which was awesome,” she said.
“So hopefully we can do it again in New Zealand.
“New Zealand are a good team, but I think Australia will still beat them, we’ve got a very strong team.”
Renee has had an extensive woodchopping career of 13 years, and started after she began dating her husband, who is also a woodchopper.
“He used to go to the shows and I’d go watch him and then I got into it through him,” she said.
“I love the friendships you make, you see a lot of the same people every weekend out of so many months of the year.
“I just love that it’s something different, I don’t know what it is about it but I really like it.”
And the sport has now spread throughout their family, with her eldest daughter, Millie, also woodchopping professionally.
“Most of our daughters did used to do it, but now it’s just our eldest who still does it,” Renee said.
“She was selected last year for the Queensland U21s, but she hasn’t been selected on the Australian team yet, that’s her goal.
“It would be awesome if we were both selected at the same time.”
Renee added that the sport is empowering for women, as it traditionally is a masculine discipline.
“I think people see it as a bloke sport, a man’s man sort of thing,” she said.
“There’s just so many ladies now who do it and it’s good to be a female and to be strong.” Another career highlight for Renee is when she was the Australian Women’s Stihl Timbersport Champion in 2021.
