British Bobsleigh Association
British Bobsleigh Championships 2008
12 March 2008
Race Reports and Results
The AON British Bobsleigh, Skeleton and Luge Championships were held at Igls in Austria in the last week of February 2008. The Bobsleigh Races were held on 29th February 2008 and saw a large entry for the Women's, 2-Man and 4-Man Competitions, with a total of 35 entries.
The Women's Race was won by the GB1 pairing of Nicola Minichiello / Lauren Therin who successfully retained their British Champions title.
Second place was a closely fought race between Paula Walker / Heather Fisher and Jackie Davies / Kelly Thomas, with Paula and Heather ahead by just 0.05 seconds after the two runs.
The Novice Driver Awards for the highest finishing driver in her first British Championships went to Paula Walker / Heather Fisher, and the Best Brakeman Award for the fastest start time went to Lauren Therin.
Deni Milner / Claire Garrett were forced to withdraw from the Women's Race after discovering a broken bolt on the rear axle fixing of their bobsleigh
British Women's Champions - Nicola Minichiello / Lauren Therin
British 2-Man Champions - John Jackson / Jamie Devlin
The 2-Man Race was won by Royal Marines John Jackson / Jamie Devlin with the Army pairing of John Hillman / Henry Nwume coming second.
The Novice Driver Awards for the highest finishing driver in his first British Championships went to Steve Stewart / Roger Smith, and the Best Brakeman Award for the fastest start time went to Jamie Devlin.
4-Man Champions Lee Johnston / Karl Johnston / John Jackson / Jamie Devlin
Runners Up - Sean Olsson / Courtney Rumbolt / Steve Smith / Dean Ward
The 4-Man Race saw a close contest between Lee Johnston / Karl Johnston / John Jackson / Jamie Devlin and three returning bronze medallists from the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics, Sean Olsson / Courtney Rumbolt / Dean Ward, who were joined by Steve 'Smudge' Smith. After beating the start time of the Lee Johnston bobsleigh, Sean Olsson's team led after the first run and just missed out to the victorious Lee Johnston / Karl Johnston / John Jackson / Jamie Devlin by 0.05 seconds after the second run.
The 4-Man team of Martin Wright / Glen Kerr / Keith McLaughlin / Kenny Simm were forced to withdraw after discovering a problem with their bobsleigh, though Glen and Keith were able to compete in other Teams as substitutes for injured athletes.
For the first time, there was an all female crew in the 4-Man Race, with Michelle Coy / Kerry Morgan / Caroline Gray and Rachel Sampson looking good in a Red Arrows liveried RAF Bobsleigh that finished in a creditable 5th place.
All Girls - Michelle Coy / Kerry Morgan / Caroline Gray / Rachel Sampson
Red Arrow - Michelle Coy / Kerry Morgan / Caroline Gray / Rachel Sampson
WOMEN'S BOBSLEIGH
The Women's Race was won by the GB1 pairing of Nicola Minichiello / Lauren Therin who successfully retained their British Champions title.
Second place was a closely fought race between Paula Walker / Heather Fisher and Jackie Davies / Kelly Thomas, with Paula and Heather ahead by just 0.05 seconds after the two runs.
The Novice Driver Awards for the highest finishing driver in her first British Championships went to Paula Walker / Heather Fisher, and the Best Brakeman Award for the fastest start time went to Lauren Therin.
Deni Milner / Claire Garrett were forced to withdraw from the Women's Race after discovering a broken bolt on the rear axle fixing of their bobsleigh
| 1st | Nicola Minichiello / Lauren Therin | 1:49.70 |
| 2nd | Paula Walker / Heather Fisher | 1:50.60 |
| 3rd | Jackie Davies / Kelly Thomas | 1:50.65 |
| 4th | Michelle Coy / Caroline Gray | 1:53.70 |
| 5th | Sarah Monk-Paes / Julia Hubbard | 1:53.93 |
| 6th | Kerry Morgan / Rachel Sampson | 1:54.31 |
| 7th | Angie Pearce / Fiona Bell | 1:55.41 |
| - | Deni Milner / Claire Garrett | DNS |
British Women's Champions - Nicola Minichiello / Lauren Therin
British 2-Man Champions - John Jackson / Jamie Devlin
2-MAN BOBSLEIGH
The 2-Man Race was won by Royal Marines John Jackson / Jamie Devlin with the Army pairing of John Hillman / Henry Nwume coming second.
The Novice Driver Awards for the highest finishing driver in his first British Championships went to Steve Stewart / Roger Smith, and the Best Brakeman Award for the fastest start time went to Jamie Devlin.
| 1st | John Jackson / Jamie Devlin | 1:47.48 |
| 2nd | John Hillman / Henry Nwume | 1:47.95 |
| 3rd | Martin Wright / Glen Kerr | 1:47.97 |
| 4th | Steve McFall / Karl Johnston | 1:49.43 |
| 5th | Steve Stewart / Roger Smith | 1:49.47 |
| 6th | Kenny Simm / Chris Woolley | 1:49.98 |
| 7th | Lamin Deen / Keith McLaughlin | 1:50.03 |
| 8th | Micky Fish / Gareth Doody | 1:50.18 |
| 9th | Keith Downes / Mark Silver | 1:50.22 |
| 10th | Harry Pilcher / Scott Allaway | 1:50.25 |
| 11th | Howard Chagalis / Oliver Greenslade | 1:51.28 |
| 12th | William Golder / Kevan Crowell | 1:51.30 |
| 13th | Nigel Bickley / John Fletcher | 1:52.65 |
| 14th | Ben Schofield / Paul Owen | 1:54.55 |
| 15th | Graeme Smith / Adam White | 1:54.59 |
| 16th | Dale Eades / Derek Eades | 1:54.64 |
| 17th | Dave Boot / Ian Richardson | 1:55.22 |
| 18th | Michelle Brachet / Simon Brister | 1:55.26 |
| 19th | Mark Carter / Lucas Marlow | 2:07.26 |
4-Man Champions Lee Johnston / Karl Johnston / John Jackson / Jamie Devlin
Runners Up - Sean Olsson / Courtney Rumbolt / Steve Smith / Dean Ward
4-MAN BOBSLEIGH
The 4-Man Race saw a close contest between Lee Johnston / Karl Johnston / John Jackson / Jamie Devlin and three returning bronze medallists from the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics, Sean Olsson / Courtney Rumbolt / Dean Ward, who were joined by Steve 'Smudge' Smith. After beating the start time of the Lee Johnston bobsleigh, Sean Olsson's team led after the first run and just missed out to the victorious Lee Johnston / Karl Johnston / John Jackson / Jamie Devlin by 0.05 seconds after the second run.
The 4-Man team of Martin Wright / Glen Kerr / Keith McLaughlin / Kenny Simm were forced to withdraw after discovering a problem with their bobsleigh, though Glen and Keith were able to compete in other Teams as substitutes for injured athletes.
| 1st | Lee Johnston / Karl Johnston / John Jackson / Jamie Devlin | 1:46.72 |
| 2nd | Sean Olsson / Courtney Rumbolt / Steve Smith / Dean Ward | 1:46.79 |
| 3rd | John Hillman / Keith McLaughlin / Lamin Deen / Scott Allaway/td> | 1:47.94 |
| 4th | Steve McFall / Micky Fish / Gareth Doody / Roger Smith | 1:48.75 |
| 5th | Michelle Coy / Kerry Morgan / Caroline Gray / Rachel Sampson | 1:51.41 |
| 6th | Sarah Monk-Paes / Mark Carter / Glen Kerr / Julia Hubbard | 1:51.98 |
| 7th | Dave Boot / Simon Brister / Adam White / Ian Richardson | 1:56.65 |
| - | Martin Wright / Glenn Kerr / Keith McLaughlin / Kenny Simm | DNS |
For the first time, there was an all female crew in the 4-Man Race, with Michelle Coy / Kerry Morgan / Caroline Gray and Rachel Sampson looking good in a Red Arrows liveried RAF Bobsleigh that finished in a creditable 5th place.
All Girls - Michelle Coy / Kerry Morgan / Caroline Gray / Rachel Sampson
Red Arrow - Michelle Coy / Kerry Morgan / Caroline Gray / Rachel Sampson