National Bobsled Push competition women's winner Kaysha Love, from Salt Lake City. Photo: USA Bobsled Skeleton

LAKE PLACID, NEW YORK — USA Bobsled Skeleton kicked off the 2023/2024 sliding competition season with the 2023 National Bobsled Push Championships.

The event, hosted in the only indoor push track in America, is the first step for bobsled athletes in their journey to be selected to the North American Cup or World Cup teams. Their overall push time as well as velocity are measured.

The competition, which took place Sept. 26, 28 and 30, featured solo and two-person combo pushes for the women and solo, two-person and three-person combos for the men.

The awards ceremony took place after events wrapped up Sept. 30 with prizes awarded to the top-scoring pilots (based on combined times) as well as the top three push athletes for both men and women.

For female pilots, Utah’s Kaysha Love took home first place. For male pilots, Kris Horn secured the top spot. Both individuals competed in the 2022 Olympic Games as push athletes and have since been transitioning to the drivers’ seat.

Emily Renna placed first in the female push athlete category, followed by Jasmine Jones in second and Cassidy Orban in third. In the male push athlete category, Hakeem Abdul-Saboor placed first, Dallas Robinsontook second, and Carsten Vissering finished third.

“It is very apparent that the athletes have done a lot of work this off-season. With hours and hours in the weight room and sprint track, many are coming into the season stronger and faster than they have ever been before. They have utilized the Ice House for push training and it is clear that work is paying off. I am excited to see the improvements for this year,” Curt Tomasevicz, Director of Sport Performance, said in a statement.

Looking forward for these bobsled athletes, the next step is Selection Races,which will take place Oct .31 through Nov. 4 (Oct. 31 and Nov. 2 for skeleton athletes and No.v 2 and No. 4 for bobsled athletes), marking the first competition of the season on the full outdoor track versus the indoor push track, at Mt. Vanhoevenberg in Lake Placid.