Bobsleigh delivered in style at Beijing 2022 with drama, emotion and record-breaking performances aplenty.
Kaillie Humphries became the first monobob Olympic champion ever, while her USA teammate Elana Meyers Taylor became the most decorated Olympic female bobsleigh athlete in history with her fourth and fifth medals.
How about the utter elation of Germany’s Laura Nolte, who bounced back from monobob heartbreak to win the two-woman event?
In the men’s events, Germany’s Francesco Friedrich underlined his status as the GOAT by defending both of his two and four-man Olympic titles.
Below, we take a closer look at these impressive feats, and see what the athletes themselves had to say.
Top 3 moments
1- Kaillie Humphries wins first monobob Olympic title
Monobob made its Olympic debut at Beijing 2022, providing more accessibility to the sport and perhaps offering the strictest test of a pilot’s driving ability.
Kaillie Humphries put on a masterclass to win the event, which capped a hugely emotional Olympic cycle.
In 2019, she switched allergenics from Canada, with whom she won two Olympic titles, to the USA. She faced a nervous wait to see if she would even be allowed to compete at the Games while her citizenship papers were processed.
But once her passport came through just two months before the Games, she needed no second invitation to put her best foot forward and seal another Olympic title.
Monobob also allowed female bobsledders the opportunity to win two medals at an Olympics for the first time ever, and a special mention must go to Humphries’ teammate Elana Meyers Taylor. The veteran pilot sealed silver in the monobob and bronze in the two-woman to cap a remarkable Games. She maintained her amazing record of winning a medal in every Olympic race she’s ever competed in… all five of them!
2 – Laura Nolte bounces back
Perhaps the most emotional moment at the stunning Yanqing National Sliding Centre came when Laura Nolte and Deborah Levi won the two-woman event.
As the monobob Youth Olympic Games champion from 2016, Germany’s Nolte had high hopes of a top-3 finish in that event. But it wasn’t to be and she was left in tears after finishing in fourth.
However days later she showed a champion spirit to bounce back and win her first Olympic gold alongside Levi. It was arguably one of the greatest comebacks of the Games.
3 – Francesco Friedrich does another double
At this point, Francesco Friedrich seems unbeatable in men’s bobsleigh.
Four years after taking gold in both the two and four man events in PyeongChang, he repeated the feat.
The scary thing? At just 31-years-old, the German legend could well try to do a triple double at Milano Cortina 2026!
What they said
Everything’s changed, I’m still breastfeeding and I gotta go pump after this! I dedicate this medal to my mum and son. My mum showed me the way and showed me what a strong woman looks like and my son shows me every single day when he gets up how to overcome obstacles and fight through things.
I remember back in 2002 the first women who won, Jill Bakken and Vonetta Flowers, so to know that young little girls in the future are going to go ‘I remember Kaillie’, then they get involved and they now have two opportunities, and hopefully even more opportunities with the four-woman in the future to win more medals. I think it’s super cool and I’ll continue to fight for that. The women before me have allowed this to happen and I want to make sure it continues for future generations.
USA’s Kaillie Humphries reflects on her journey after winning her third Olympic title, and the first monobob Olympic gold ever.
We are blessed in the sense that something that’s great fun is our job and there’s hardly anything better happens to you in life. There might be 10, 15, 20 years in life that you can dedicate yourself to a sport, then you will have to give it up and do something else which is not as powerful, and others will be overtaking you after that.
Francesco Friedrich, arguably the most dominant winter Olympians of all time, after retaining his two-man bobsleigh Olympic title.
