U.S. leads, Canada 2nd in 4-man bobsleigh
Written by on February 26th, 2010 in Latest News.
Steven Holcomb, centre, and teammates Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curtis Tomasevicz compete in the four-man bobsleigh competition at the Vancouver Olympics on Friday. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Steven Holcomb is on pace to win the United States’ first Olympic gold medal in four-man bobsleigh since 1948.
Holcomb piloted USA 1 to two track records at the Whistler Sliding Centre during the first two runs of the men’s four-man bobsleigh at the Vancouver Olympics on Friday. The American team came to Whistler as a favourite, ranked No.1 in World Cup standings.
Getting incredible starts from his powerful pushmen Curtis Tomasevicz, Steve Mesler and Justin Olsen, Holcomb set the track record with a time of 50.89 seconds on his first run.
On their second run, the Americans finished in 50.86 for a cumulative time of 1 minute 41.75 seconds.
Canada’s Lyndon Rush, of Humbolt, Sask., is in second place. His team of Edmonton’s David Bisset, Calgary’s Lascelles Brown and Chris Le Bihan, of Grande Prairie, Alta., sat in second position after its first run of 51.12 seconds.
On their second run, Rush overcame a poor turn in the first corner and finished in 51.03. With a cumulative time of 1:42.15, Canada 1 is second heading into Saturday’s final two runs.
Rush later called his error on the first turn a “rookie mistake.”
Rush said it will be hard to catch Holcomb, who has a 4-10ths of a second lead over the Canadians.
“He’s laying a whipping on everybody right now,” Rush told CTV. “That’s a lot, especially in four-man bobsleigh.”
German just behind Rush
Germany’s Andre Lange, the most decorated bobsledder in Olympic history, is only 4-100ths of a second behind Rush heading into Saturday’s final runs.
Lange, who won his fourth Olympic gold medal in the two-man bobsleigh on Sunday, nearly flipped on the 13th corner of his second run. He salvaged a run of 51.05, for a cumulative time of 1:42.19.
Edmonton’s Pierre Lueders is sixth, behind Switzerland 1 and Germany 2. Lueders steered his team of Justin Kripps of Summerland, B.C., Edmonton’s Neville Wright and CFL linebacker Jesse Lumsden of Edmonton, to times of 51.27 and 51.29 on the first and second runs, for a total of 1:42.56.
Lueders was frustrated after his second run, which had been delayed by two earlier crashes on the track.
“Well, when you have two crashes in front of you, what do you expect,” Lueders said before walking away from a CTV interview.
There were six crashes on the 13 corner, nicknamed the 50-50, during the first two runs on Friday.
Canada won its first and only Olympic medal in the four-man bobsleigh in 1964, when Victory Emery steered Canada to gold.
