Germany sweeps 4-man Park City World Cup Bobsled

Germany sweep, 1st-6th place 4-man bobsled podium, World Cup, Park City with 9-time Olympic announcer Carl Roepke front and center. Photo: Michele Roepke

PARK CITY, Utah — Saturday saw day 3 of the Park City BMW IBSF World Cup, with pilot Fredrico Friedrich of Germany winning the 4-man bobsled World Cup (WC) races in Park City after winning the 2-man on day 2. The 4-man podium was a German sweep.

It’d been five years since this Olympic venue hosted a 4-man WC and nine years since a 2-Man/Woman WC.

RESULTS: 

4-Man Bobsleigh

1. GER, Franchesco Friedrich/Candy Bauer/Thorsten Margis/Alexander Schueller 1:33.62
2. GER, Erec Bruckert/Johannes Lochner/Christian Rasp/Georg Fleischhauer, 1;33.85 (+0.23)
3. GER, Christof Haufer/Tobias Schneider/Michael Salzer, 1;33.86 (+0.24) 

Off the second-place time by only .01 second, the fourth man in the third-place sled, Matias Sommer, was serenaded by the crowd gathered at the awards ceremony in the English language, a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday.

Americans placed 7th and 11th.

2-Woman Bobsleigh:

1. GER, Kim Kalicki/Leonie Fiebig, 1;37.37
2. GER, Laura Nolte/Lena Neunecker, 1:37.60 (+0.23)
3. USA, Kaillie Humphries/Jasmin Jones, 1;37.69 (+0.32)

Americans placed 8th and 9th.

Sleds slid at speeds of 140 kilometers per hour and 65.9 miles per hour.

John Morgan has been the bobsled television commentator you’ve been listening to on NBC for the past 10 Olympic Games. He said, ” The athletes love coming back here, they love Park City, the track, and the atmosphere with this fun crowd, it’s a spectacular track. This track is more meticulous, than say Whistler and Lake Placid. Park City is more like Winterberg and Innsbruck in that it’s easy to get down, it’s tough to get down fast.”

The Skeleton and Bobsled Tour came to Park City from Whistler and moves next to Lake Placid in two weeks. Watch the live stream here.

The Utah Olympic Park track crew are the first ones at the venue every morning before sunrise and the last ones there after sunset. R.J. Shannon has been the Park City track manager for 15 years. He said, “We were happy to be able to provide clean, clear, consistent conditions. And when that spectator dropped his flag from Switzerland into the track, the crew awesomely hustled and removed it before the next sled started.”

International Bobsled Official Aaron Lanningham came up from Salt Lake City for the races. As likely the first athlete with a disability to transfer out of his wheelchair and not only slide a skeleton sled down this track 20 years ago but then do it again in a bobsled, he’s been a leader in what is now a thriving global Para Bobsled competition community, thanks in part to the support of the National Ability Center.