Soild weekend for GB sleds
A new-look GB1 4-man crew secured a wider podium finish and a British pilot with a remarkable recovery story impressed on his top-tier debut in the weekend’s World Cup bobsleigh action.
Leon Greenwood made his long-awaited debut alongside Brad Hall, Taylor Lawrence and Greg Cackett as they finished sixth in St Moritz. Greenwood joined the team in the summer of 2022 but suffered an injury in his first pre-season and has been Hall’s reserve brakeman for much of the year that has followed since his return.
The 27-year-old helped his crew to the fourth-best push times in each of the two heats as GB1 sat in the medal positions at halfway before having to settle for a second top-six in as many races.
Greenwood, Hall, Lawrence and Cackett clocked a two-run time of 2 minutes 9.64 seconds in Switzerland, finishing almost seven tenths clear of seventh spot and 35 hundredths from third.
Germany celebrated gold and silver through Johannes Lochner and Francesco Friedrich respectively, with Emils Cipulis winning bronze for Latvia on Sunday.
In Saturday’s racing, John Stanbridge capped an incredible comeback to pilot GB2 to a 19th-place finish in the 2-man event.
Stanbridge was appearing in his first top-tier race just over a year after breaking his neck in an accident in Altenberg.
He and fellow debutant Alex Cartagena made the second run for the top 20 sleds in a field of 25, sitting 18thafter Run 1 and slipping just the one spot at the finish.
Hall and Lawrence placed ninth in the same race off the fourth and sixth best start times as Lochner again took gold ahead of Friedrich and home favourite Michael Vogt.
John Stanbridge & Alex Cartagena made their World Cup debuts
In the Women’s Monobob, Adele Nicoll continued her impressive development with a second successive top 10 finish as she placed 10th having been ninth in Igls last time out.
British Shot Putt Champion Nicoll was making just her third World Cup start as a pilot and she again showed she has the potential to be a contender as her career progresses.
There is no World Cup racing this coming weekend so the focus switches to Europa Cup competition in Moritz, with GB having crews in the 2-man, 4-man and Women’s Monobob and Women’s Bobsleigh on Thursday and Friday.
World Cup racing returns the following week in Lillehammer, Norway.
Adele Nicoll made the top 10 two races running
