Nicoll Cruises to First Career Gold Medal

From St. Moritz, SUI

(January 19, 2024) – The track in St. Moritz is in Switzerland, so it’s definitely a Swiss track. However there’s a hint of Brit in it, with curves named after Tony Nash and Robin Dixon, members of the St. Moritz Bobsleigh Club who won gold in the 1964 Olympic Games who have curves named after them along the track.

So it was a fitting place for Great Britain’s newest piloting talent to win her first career IBSF gold medal in Europe Cup action, and in dominating fashion at that.

Adele Nicoll and brakewoman Kya Placide went off early in the first heat and put down both the quickest start and quickest downtime of the heat to open up a .35 second advantage over Belgium’s Kelly van Petegem and Jïenity de Kler. In third sat another British team, Nikki McSweeney and Willa Gibb, .05 behind the Belgian duo.

In the second heat it was another pilot who is in the midst of a career season who took the lead from McSweeney, as Poland’s Linda Weiszewski and Marika Zandecka edged out McSweeney by .04 to take the lead with two sleds to go and secure Weiszewski’s first ever two-woman medal.

Van Petegem’s second effort was more than enough to take the lead from Weiszewski, leaving only Nicoll to go.

Once again, Nicoll and Placide set the quick push of the competition, and once again Nicoll drove to a quickest time at every split on the track with a finish that was .61 ahead of van Petegem, and a full second ahead of anyone off the podium

Nicoll’s gold medal was her first medal as a pilot in two-woman bobsled, and the first gold for Great Britain’s women’s bobsled program at any level since Mica McNeill and Aleasha Kiddle won gold in North American Cup action in Jaunary of 2018.

For van Petegem, her silver medal was her second straight medal in Europe Cup two-woman action and her third straight top five.

McSweeney finished fourth, with Germanhy’s Diana Filipszki and Sarah Neitz in fifth, while the United States’ Lauren Brzozowski and Jestena Mattson rounded out the top six.

Sarah Blizzard and brakewoman Natalie Setiadji finished 11th, up from 12th in the first heat, while the United States’ Riley Tejceck and Macy Tarlton finished 13th.

With two races left in Europe Cup two-woman bobsled, Diana Filipszki leads Kelly van Petegem by 36 points. Adele Nicoll is third, 136 back but having missed two races. Debora Annen and Georgea Popescu round out the top five.

Results: