 Gallagher first represented Australia in 2009 at the New Zealand Winter Games , where she won a gold medal . In January 2010 , she competed at her first IPC Alpine Skiing World Cup event in Austria and won a bronze medal in slalom . Before the start of the 2010 Games , she had competed in nine World Cup events . On her 24th birthday , she won a bronze medal at the Vancouver games in the Women 's Slalom visually impaired event , becoming the first Australian woman to do so . In her first and second time down the hill , she finished third both times , She also competed in the Women 's Giant Slalom visually impaired event at the 2010 Games , finishing seventh after headset issues that caused problems with communication . 
