That domination largely continues in luge and bobsleigh – but in skeleton the Americans, Canadians and the British are making a name for themselves as they hurl themselves down icy, twisting, banked tracks in gravity-powered sleds.

If, at least for the women, skeleton is the new kid on the block it actually made its Olympic debut far earlier, in 1928.

Two years earlier the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had officially declared skeleton as an Olympic sport and Jennison Heaton promptly gave the United States gold.

Four-man bobsleigh appeared in the first Winter Games in 1924 (five-men in 1928) and the two-man variant followed in 1932, though the events were not included in 1960, while luge came in at the 1964 Games in Innsbruck.

Women made their Olympic skeleton entrance in pairs in 2002 at the Salt Lake Games, US star Tristan Gale landing gold before Swiss Maya Pedersen succeeded her four years later.

Taking silver in 2006 was Briton Shelley Rudman, who is now one of two Britons ranked in the world top ten ahead of fifth-placed Amy Williams, another regular top ten World Cup finisher.

Rudman ousted top-ranked Mellisa Hollingworth in the World Cup race at St Moritz last week to show her form with Williams fourth.

“This season has all been about improving every performance to peak ready for the Olympics and things are going well,” said Rudman.

Returning to the US men’s skeleton line-up after missing out in 2006 after testing positive for banned substance finasteride, a medication used to treat hair loss, is 2007 world champion Zach Lund.

US bobsleigh hopes are high in the shape of Steven Holcomb and John Napier, the world’s top-ranked four-man drivers.

Holcomb and his push team of Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curt Tomasevicz will drive the USA I sled in Vancouver with Napier, Chuck Berkeley, Chris Fogt and Steve Langton in USA II.

Two-man lineups include Holcomb and Tomasevicz, Napier and Langton with Kohn’s second yet to be decided.

The women’s lineup features three pairs, Shauna Rohbock and Michelle Rzepka, Erin Pac and Elana Meyers and Bree Schaaf and Emily Azevedo.

Elsewhere, reigning two-and four-man bob champion Andre Lange of Germany is clearly one to watch as he bids for a hat-trick in the latter category.

In luge, look no further for now than Italian Armin “il cannibale” Zoeggeler, going for a third straight gold, though Russian World Cup challenger Albert Demtschenko and German world champ Felix Loch will run him close.

Among the “Doppelsitzer” (luge pairs) German World Cup leaders Andre Florschutz and Torsten Wustlich are hoping that glory beckons.

Double world athletics champion Eunice Barber had been hoping to join a team whose driver was Canadian-born Lesa Mayes-Stringer.

However last month doubts were raised over the team’s future after Mayes-Stringer was denied French nationality for a second time.

Things didn’t get any better when Mayes-Stringer, partnered with Flore Remy, finished 19th in the first World Cup event of the season, at Park City on November 13.

A week later the team went against the wishes of the French Winter Sports Federation (FFSG) and decided not to compete a week later at Lake Placid.

The FFSG held a meeting Monday and said it had decided to put the brakes on the team’s bid.

“We found ourselves in something of a delicate situation. Finishing 19th then deciding not to compete at the next leg didn’t make things any easier,” said Eric Le Chanony, a chief tecnical director at the Federation.

“The bobsleigh (team) is well off the mark as far as qualifying goes, and is therefore well off Olympic qualifying.

“We’ve therefore decided to bring their season to an end.”

To qualify for the Vancouver Olympics the French women’s team would have had to finish among the top 15 in the overall World Cup or finish among the top 10 at the European Championships on January 18 at Igls, Austria.

Lake Placid (AFP) –

Hays was diagnosed with an intraparenchymal hematoma following a CT scan after a training crash last Wednesday in Winterberg, Germany. An MRI confirmed that Hays risks brain damage if he continues bobsledding.

“In discussion with various experts in the field of sports-induced injuries, it was the consensus that Todd should not engage in any further bobsledding to avoid any additional trauma to a healing brain which may cause irreversible damage,” team doctor Eugene Byrne said.

Hays, 40, had been a college linebacker in American football and a US champion kickboxer. He ended a two-year sledding hiatus last year and was second in this season’s World Cup two-man stop at Utah.

“This is one of the most difficult things I’ve experienced,” Hays said. “My family and my future are more important than anything, and I need to keep that in mind as I consider what’s happened.

“This isn’t how I wanted to end my career and I’m devastated because I feel like I’m letting my team down. There are three guys in my sled that were counting on me to give them an Olympic ticket. Now I can’t do that.”

Darrin Steele, US Bobsled’s chief executive, said Hays was a clear contender for a Vancouver podium finish.

“I know the decision to retire was difficult for him but I believe he made the right decision by putting his current and future health first,” Steele said. “Todd is a champion with or without a gold medal.”

That domination largely continues in luge and bobsleigh – but in skeleton the Americans, Canadians and the British are making a name for themselves as they hurl themselves down icy, twisting, banked tracks in gravity-powered sleds.

If, at least for the women, skeleton is the new kid on the block it actually made its Olympic debut far earlier, in 1928.

Two years earlier the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had officially declared skeleton as an Olympic sport and Jennison Heaton promptly gave the United States gold.

Four-man bobsleigh appeared in the first Winter Games in 1924 (five-men in 1928) and the two-man variant followed in 1932, though the events were not included in 1960, while luge came in at the 1964 Games in Innsbruck.

Women made their Olympic skeleton entrance in pairs in 2002 at the Salt Lake Games, US star Tristan Gale landing gold before Swiss Maya Pedersen succeeded her four years later.

Taking silver in 2006 was Briton Shelley Rudman, who is now one of two Britons ranked in the world top ten ahead of fifth-placed Amy Williams, another regular top ten World Cup finisher.

Rudman ousted top-ranked Mellisa Hollingworth in the World Cup race at St Moritz last week to show her form with Williams fourth.

“This season has all been about improving every performance to peak ready for the Olympics and things are going well,” said Rudman.

Returning to the US men’s skeleton line-up after missing out in 2006 after testing positive for banned substance finasteride, a medication used to treat hair loss, is 2007 world champion Zach Lund.

US bobsleigh hopes are high in the shape of Steven Holcomb and John Napier, the world’s top-ranked four-man drivers.

Holcomb and his push team of Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curt Tomasevicz will drive the USA I sled in Vancouver with Napier, Chuck Berkeley, Chris Fogt and Steve Langton in USA II.

Two-man lineups include Holcomb and Tomasevicz, Napier and Langton with Kohn’s second yet to be decided.

The women’s lineup features three pairs, Shauna Rohbock and Michelle Rzepka, Erin Pac and Elana Meyers and Bree Schaaf and Emily Azevedo.

Elsewhere, reigning two-and four-man bob champion Andre Lange of Germany is clearly one to watch as he bids for a hat-trick in the latter category.

In luge, look no further for now than Italian Armin “il cannibale” Zoeggeler, going for a third straight gold, though Russian World Cup challenger Albert Demtschenko and German world champ Felix Loch will run him close.

Among the “Doppelsitzer” (luge pairs) German World Cup leaders Andre Florschutz and Torsten Wustlich are hoping that glory beckons.

Lake Placid (AFP) –

Holcomb and his push team of Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curt Tomasevicz will drive the USA I sled at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games next month with Napier, Chuck Berkeley, Chris Fogt and Steve Langton in USA II.

Mike Kohn will pilot USA III with Jamie Moriarty, Bill Schuffenhauer and Nick Cunningham as his push squad.

Two-man lineups include Holcomb and Tomasevicz, Napier and Langton with Kohn’s second yet to be decided.

The women’s lineup features three pairs, Shauna Rohbock and Michelle Rzepka, Erin Pac and Elana Meyers and Bree Schaaf and Emily Azevedo.

“We are very excited about this Olympic team in all disciplines,” said federation chief executive Darrin Steele. “We are thrilled to be sending our best U.S. women’s team ever.”

In skeleton, the Americans will send Eric Bernotas, Zach Lund and John Daly in the men’s event and Noelle Pikus-Pace and Katie Uhlaender in the women’s event.

Lund was not allowed to compete at the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games after testing positive for the then-banned substance finasteride, which he said was part of a medication he used to treat hair loss.