Danielle first became involved in paddling in 1979 through the Illawarra Canoe Club in NSW. She was primarily interested in the disciplines of canoe slalom and wildwater canoeing, although over her career she has been involved in canoe polo, flatwater, multi-sport marathons, dragon boat racing and touring.

Danielle was selected to her first Senior Australian Canoe Slalom Team in 1982 and remained on the senior team every year until her retirement in 2001. During this time Danielle held the National Women’s Slalom title from 1983 until 2001 and was only beaten twice in that time. Danielle went on to represent Australia at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, where she won a silver medal in the women’s K1. This was a history-making achievement as Danielle was the first Australian woman to win a canoeing medal at the Olympics, as well as the first Australian to win a medal in a canoe slalom event, competing at the next two Olympic Games, placing 12th in 1996 and 8th in 2000.

She held the position of National Coach in 1997 for canoe slalom. She retired from competitive canoeing in 2001 and from coaching in 2002 to focus on her career. Over the years, Danielle continued to be involved with national selection for canoe slalom and also represented canoe slalom in the capacity of State Delegate and Paddlers Representative to Paddle Australia. She was appointed Director to the Australian Canoeing Board in 2007 and was Australian Canoeing President 2008 to 2016. In 2013, Danielle was appointed to the Australian Olympic Committee Board. Danielle was awarded an OAM in 2002 for her services to sport, particularly to canoe slalom and Olympic sport.