×

Selection races continue in Utah

Annie O’Shea guides her sled at the start of a run during the U.S. skeleton team selection races last Friday at Mount Van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid. O’Shea turned in the top women’s time in the event. Photo — Jason Hicks-Moriarty

The United States bobsled and skeleton selection races continue this week on the 2002 Olympic track in Park City, Utah before the national team is announced on Sunday.

Women’s bobsledders Elana Meyers Taylor and Jamie Greubel Poser, a Lake Placid resident from Newtown, Pennsylvania, are a lock for two of three available pilot positions thanks to a bye awarded to both athletes following their medal performances at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

Jazmine Fenlator, of New Jersey, is in good position to claim the final available pilot spot on the women’s team after finishing third in the Lake Placid selection race last weekend.

The U.S. is the only nation to medal in every women’s bobsled Olympic event since the discipline made its debut at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games. Meyers Taylor was of a part of that winning tradition twice, having won the bronze medal in 2010 as a brakeman for Erin Pac, and then silver in Sochi. She is on track to make history again, this time in a four-man bobsled. The International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation announced in October that the four-man discipline would be open to female athletes, allowing female-only, male-only and mixed gender teams to race. Meyers Taylor has elected to race in Saturday’s four-man bobsled trials, and she will be a strong contender against a field of experienced pilots.

“There’s been such an amazing legacy of women in the sport of bobsled, I can only hope to add to anything they’ve created,” Meyers Taylor said. “Shauna Rohbock (2006 Olympic medalist) has been driving four-man bobsleds down Park City for years and she’s helped me tremendously this week understand the differences between two-man and four-man. My crew has been awesome and the coaching staff has been so supportive of this. I’m excited to see what happens. At this moment I can’t say I’m thinking too much about history. I’m a competitor and every time I see a four-man go down that hill I can feel my adrenaline start pumping ready to compete. Yes I’m excited to make history, but I really want to put on a good show; push fast, drive my sled well, and get to the bottom, high five my crew, and see where we stand.”

Matt Antoine hits the ice during last Friday’s U.S. skeleton team selection races at Mount Van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid. Antoine was the fastest racer on the track that day. Photo — Jason Hicks-Moriarty

Two-time Olympic champion Kaillie Humphries led the initiative and was the first woman to compete in the discipline after racing in the four-man bobsled Canadian Championships on Monday. Humphries finished third and is expected to race in the upcoming North American Cup series prior to the start of the World Cup tour.

Steven Holcomb is the sole men’s bobsled competitor to earn a bye onto the national team after earning double bronze medals at the Sochi Olympics. Pilots Nick Cunningham and Codie Bascue are strong candidates for the second and third available spots on the men’s team after finishing first and third, respectively, in the Lake Placid race.

The pool of push athletes will be an interesting mix of only a few returning national team athletes and a majority of rookies. The only Olympic push athletes to vie for a spot on this season’s national team are 2010 Olympic gold medalist Justin Olsen and 2014 Olympic silver medalist Lauryn Williams.

Women’s skeleton competitors Annie O’Shea and Savannah Graybill both have first- and second-place finishes from the two Lake Placid trials races, and the two veterans are expected to battle it out for the USA-1 position in Park City. There are two available World Cup spots on the women’s team, and a roster of eager prospects will try to challenge O’Shea and Graybill for the chance to make the squad.

Matt Antoine earned his spot on the men’s skeleton national team with his 2014 Olympic bronze medal performance. Kyle Tress finished second to Antoine in both Lake Placid races, making him a favorite for one of the two remaining men’s spots. Several up-and-coming athletes have pushed their way onto the coach’s radar with strong performances in the first half of trials, and the Park City finale will be a fight for the third and final men’s World Cup spot.

Points will be tallied following Saturday’s races and the national team will be announced on Sunday.

Starting at $1.44/week.

Subscribe Today