This year’s Winter Olympics marks the 30th anniversary of the Jamaican bobsled team’s debut in the two-man and four-man events at the 1988 Calgary Games and the 25th anniversary of the movie Cool Runnings which told their story.
The four-man bobsleigh will return to the slopes of the Winter Olympics today (21 February).
Jamaica has competed consistently in the Winter Olympic Games since their debut in 1988, but this year sees the return of the four-man team, as well as the debut of a two-person women’s team.
Despite 30 years of the Jamaica men’s team competing, there had not been a women’s Jamaican bobsled team at the Winter Olympics until this year. The much-heralded Jamaican women’s bobsleigh team made their Winter Olympic debut on a night of colour and emotion.
This after Jamaican bobsled driver/coach Sandra Kiriasis had quit the team over a disagreement about a demotion, and threatened to keep the sled.
At a near sold-out sliding centre, pilot Jazmine Fenlator-Victorian and brakewoman Carrie Russell made two impressive starts but their steering let them down and they finished 18 out of 20 teams following the first two runs on 20 February.
Nigerians Seun Adigun and Akuoma Omeoga, both track athletes, were also making history as the first African country to compete in bobsleigh at the games, though they fared even worse, coming last in both runs.
Catch the modern-day Cool Runnings men’s and women’s team compete today from 6pm on SuperSport 12, channel 212.
