The roller derby skater Maddy “BB Gun” Wilkinson has speed and scale on her side. The 24-year-old jammer (primary point-scorer) for the Adelaide team the Wild Hearses is 156cm tall (“I push just 5’ 1”, maybe”) and easily weaves between small gaps left by the opposing team, shielded by taller teammates from the scanning eyes of their rivals.
Wilkinson is fast too, and fearless, darting out to knock an opponent off balance – although she has never forgotten the time she broke her collarbone competing in junior league. “Definitely no punching or kicking people’s feet out,” she insists. “I use my shoulders a lot: shoulders, hips, the side of the body are all legal zones.”
