British Bobsleigh Association
British bobsleighers win gold in Lake Placid
22 February 2009
By Sportsmail Reporter
Taken from http://www.dailymail.co.uk
Britain's Nicola Minichiello and Gillian Cooke have won the Women's Bobsleigh World Championship title in Lake Placid.
The duo became the first British pair to win gold since 1965 when they triumphed at the Olympic Sports Complex in New York state.
The British duo set the fastest times in both the third and fourth heats to post an overall winning time of three minutes 48.22 seconds.
They became the first gold medallists from Britain since Anthony Nash and Robin Dixon at St Moritz in Switzerland in 1965.
Minicheillo, the driver and a world silver medallist four years ago with Jackie Gunn, advertised on Facebook for a new breakman with an athletics background at the end of last summer and Cooke - who has competed for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in pole vault and long jump - answered the call.
Just five months later they are world champions and established, along with Olympic silver medallist Shelley Rudman in the Luge, as genuine gold medal contenders at the Olympic Winer Games in Vancouver next year.
Minichiello, a 30-year-old teacher who trains at Bath University, was delighted with the victory and said: 'It's fantastic. It's great for my country. I'm so glad.
'I really felt going into here that this track is such a magical track that it could have been anybody's day, and it was.'
Britain's Nicola Minichiello and Gillian Cooke have won the Women's Bobsleigh World Championship title in Lake Placid.
The duo became the first British pair to win gold since 1965 when they triumphed at the Olympic Sports Complex in New York state.
The British duo set the fastest times in both the third and fourth heats to post an overall winning time of three minutes 48.22 seconds.
They became the first gold medallists from Britain since Anthony Nash and Robin Dixon at St Moritz in Switzerland in 1965.
Minicheillo, the driver and a world silver medallist four years ago with Jackie Gunn, advertised on Facebook for a new breakman with an athletics background at the end of last summer and Cooke - who has competed for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in pole vault and long jump - answered the call.
Just five months later they are world champions and established, along with Olympic silver medallist Shelley Rudman in the Luge, as genuine gold medal contenders at the Olympic Winer Games in Vancouver next year.
Minichiello, a 30-year-old teacher who trains at Bath University, was delighted with the victory and said: 'It's fantastic. It's great for my country. I'm so glad.
'I really felt going into here that this track is such a magical track that it could have been anybody's day, and it was.'