Winter Olympics 2022 - Team GB medal hopes fade in two-man bobsleigh as Germans dominate again

ByRichard Newman

Updated 15/02/2022 at 11:01 GMT

Brad Hall and Nick Gleeson's chances of winning a medal in the two-man bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics look to be over after failing to challenge the top 10 at the halfway point of the competition. Mistakes cost them time at the sliding centre, as German favourite Francesco Friedrich took the lead after two heats. Watch every moment of the Games on discovery+.

Great Britain's chances of winning a Winter Olympic medal in the two-man bobsleigh faded quickly after mistakes from pilot Brad Hall left them outside the top 10 at the halfway point of the competition.

Germany were back on top in the sliding competitions, having won all but one event at the sliding centre across bobsleigh, skeleton and luge in Beijing.

Pilot Francesco Friedrich and Thorsten Margis have a 0.15-second lead over Johannes Lochner and Florian Bauer, with Rostislav Gaitiukevich and Aleksei Laptev third for the Russian Olympic Committee.

Innsbruck

Buckwitz bags Innsbruck World Cup hat-trick as Friedrich turns tables on Lochner

17/12/2023 at 17:55

Hall and Nick Gleeson had high hopes for a medal after regularly threatening the podium across the season, but small errors in both of their heats meant they lost time, and they will go into the second day more than four tenths of a second out of the medals.

Friedrich and Margis went into the event as the overwhelming favourites, defending their title from Pyeongchang and on the back of seven straight two-man world titles for Friedrich, six of which were with Margis.

They were the fourth pair to go and they set the standard early on with a time of 59.02, a time which ended up being 0.24 seconds ahead of their nearest challengers Lochner and Bauer, also of Germany, by the end of the round.

Hall was also one of those to go early, and although the British sled dipped under one minute, the GB pilot was clearly disappointed as he shook his head once they crossed the finish line, meaning they ended the round 11th but less than three tenths of a second off the medal positions.

Barely anything separated Hall from the podium places, meaning the top 11 was stacked with potential medal contenders heading into the second round - but Friedrich already looked unstoppable.

Jamaica's Stephens kisses photo after second bobsleigh run

• Beijing 2022 Olympic Games: Schedule, big names, key events and more
• ‘I chose a nation, it chose me back’ - Humphries first woman to win gold for two countries

Hall and Gleeson were unable to get back under one minute on their second run, not helped with a big skid into the ninth turn, but there was concern in the Eurosport commentary box that the track was starting to deteoriate.

It was enough to take the lead but 10 teams were still to go and the signs were not looking good for GB, as successive sleds - including one from Monaco - went ahead of them.

Lochner and Bauer produced a brilliant second run to put pressure on Friedrich, and even though the favourite made mistakes in his run, it was the reigning Olympic champion who would lead overnight - but his advantage was cut to 0.15 seconds.

Hall's second effort saw them fall further behind the podium places, and with 0.42 seconds to make up, they will need a miracle to move up the standings on Tuesday, with the GB's favoured four-man event still to come.

- - -

Watch every moment of Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 on discovery+

Bobsleigh

Lochner and Fleischhauer fire on dream day for Germany

16/12/2023 at 18:49

Bobsleigh

German Friedrich narrowly beats Great Britain's Hall to bobsleigh gold in Innsbruck

12/02/2023 at 19:02

Bobsleigh

Hall soars to stunning World Cup bobsleigh gold in Altenberg for Britain

15/01/2023 at 16:32