Beijing 2022: Bath-based sportspeople looking to extend remarkable run of success as Winter Olympics officially begins
The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games officially begin today, with a host sportspeople who train at the University of Bath among those ready to take on the world with Team GB.
PyeongChang 2018 bronze-medallist Laura Deas returns for a second Olympic Games and is joined in the skeleton squad by Brogan Crowley, Matt Weston and Marcus Wyatt.
Aiming for podium places in the bobsleigh competitions are the in-form Brad Hall, Greg Cackett, Nick Gleeson and Taylor Lawrence, in the men’s events, and Mica McNeill and Montell Douglas in the women’s race.
All 10 of the athletes, plus bobsleigh reserves Ben Simons and Adele Nicoll, are part of the British Bobsleigh & Skeleton Association (BBSA) which is based at the University of Bath and has enjoyed incredible success since the UK’s only push-start track was opened on campus 20 years ago.
Eight medals have been won by BBSA athletes representing Team GB during that time, seven in skeleton – Alex Coomber (bronze, Salt Lake City 2002), Shelley Rudman (silver, Turin 2006), Amy Williams (gold, Vancouver 2010), Lizzy Yarnold (gold, Sochi 2014 and PyeongChang 2018), Deas and Dom Parsons (both bronze, PyeongChang 2018). John Jackson, Stuart Benson, Bruce Tasker and Joel Fearon also won four-man bobsleigh bronze at Sochi 2014.
Also competing in Beijing are Jackie Narracott, who used to train at the University and will represent Australia in skeleton at a second Games, and the Jamaican four-man bobsleigh team who finished their Beijing preparations at Team Bath last month.
Sports Performance graduate Lloyd Wallace is back on the Olympic stage too and will represent Team GB in aerial skiing for a second successive Games.
Good luck to all taking part – click here for a full timetable of when the Bath-based athletes will be in action during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.
