Winter sports
Friedrich gets his fifth double in the tenth four-man bobsleigh World Championships
Francesco Friedrich, Thorsten Margis, Alexander Schüller and Felix Straub at the start of the four-man bobsleigh. photo
© Robert Michael/dpa
The dominance of the Germans, including Bob King Friedrich, is frightening. It’s not just about the money. Head coach Spies sees the cause in the lack of structural work in the other nations.
His 100th race in the premier class was for Francesco Friedrich on the triumphal journey. In the evening sun of Winterberg, the 33-year-old Saxon and his crew Thorsten Margis, Alexander Schüller and Felix Straub celebrated his sixth title and therefore his fifth World Championship double at his tenth four-man bobsleigh world championship.
“We had prepared everything for this moment. The start times are right, the rides are right, the material is right. It’s just fun,” said record world champion Friedrich on ZDF after his 16th World Cup gold in both disciplines.
Berchtesgaden’s Johannes Lochner (“I’ve been second so many times, I want gold”) was no longer able to counter – as he had hoped at half time at the World Cup. But he and his crew in silver and Adam Ammour completed the German triple success after the German two-man bobsleigh pilots led by world champions Lisa Buckwitz and Vanessa Mark also stood on the podium on Saturday.
Spies: “Performing at the limit in all areas”
As in the two-man bobsleigh race, the two-time double Olympic champion Friedrich set a track record in the first run with the large sled and in 53.12 seconds obliterated the nine-year-old record set by his former club colleague Nico Walther (53.48 seconds). With 53.11 seconds, he beat the mark again in the third run and laid the foundation for victory.
It is questionable whether Germany’s dominance at the home World Cup with the triple successes in the two-man bobsleigh for women and men and now also in the premier class of four-man bobsleigh will continue. “We are currently performing at the limit in all areas,” said head coach René Spies of the German Press Agency. Two-man bobsleigh world champion Lisa Buckwitz, who won ahead of monobob world champion Laura Nolte and Kim Kalicki on Saturday, said: “We have some material changes from the world association that have already taken effect this season. We now have to continue to work on it to stay ahead. ” Other nations just say, “The FES sled runs great. Sure, that’s true, we have the best sleds. But we’ve also invested a lot in development,” said Buckwitz.
That could change at the next World Cup in Lake Placid. Buckwitz pusher Vanessa Mark emphasized, “You can’t say that the others aren’t competitive. Kaysha Love or Elana Meyers Taylor, who came back after two children, are developing really well.” And good material also includes good starts and the pilot’s driving skills.
“No development of long-term top structures”
Spies pointed to the much better reserves of other nations when scouting for athletics: “They don’t come by themselves, you have to get them.” Systematic work is essential for this. “When we came away empty-handed at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, we worked intensively on structures for young talent together with athletics nationwide. We also optimized the material in several steps, both with the FES and, in the meantime, with Wallner. Other nations also have these options.” said Spies.
The problem, however, is that many top coaches change teams every four years during the Olympics and therefore do not build up top structures in the long term. With the billionaire Peter Spuhler and his railway construction company Stadler Rail, the Swiss have probably the most wealthy sponsor in the entire World Cup circus. But the quarreling clubs in Switzerland and the constant interference with the top management of Swiss Sliding, which has changed several times in recent years, have so far prevented the Swiss from gaining similar dominance as they did in the 70s and 80s.