It is 34 years because the four-man Jamaican bobsled crew made its Olympic debut. It is one of the vital evocative Wintry weather Olympic tales — immortalized within the “Cool Runnings” movie — as Jamaica’s bobsled crew at Beijing 2022 said.
“We’re completely commemorated that we had been those to have introduced Jamaica (4-man) bobsleigh again on the Olympics after 24 years,” mentioned Shanwayne Stephens on Saturday, relating to the final time Jamaica competed within the bobsled at a Wintry weather Video games at Nagano.
“And it’s unbelievable to only constitute Jamaica, Jamaica bobsledders and each unmarried ‘Cool Runnings’ fan available in the market,” Shanwayne Stephens mentioned on Saturday.
The crew made a nod to the mythical Disney film — within the type of an egg reference.
“I do have a fortunate egg. This can be a tribute to the movie,” Matthew Wekpe mentioned, referencing the fictitious “Cool Runnings” brakeman Sanka, who did the similar.
“I handiest began to do bobsleigh 14 months in the past. Prior to my first race, me and Shan (Stephens) got here up with the concept it will be reasonably cool to deliver again a fortunate egg.
“We left the rental at my first race in Austria and located this, so we declared that the egg.”
Film references apart, the crew need other folks to grasp they’re useless enthusiastic about the game.
Even though they completed final after two heats on Saturday, the finished their runs and can race once more on Sunday as they set their points of interest on build up Jamaica’s bobsled program.
“A large a part of us being right here is solely to turn those who you’ll be able to succeed in anything else that you wish to have to succeed in in case you simply put your thoughts to it and pass available in the market and do it,” Stephens added.
Successful a medal isn’t there for us, now not but, now not presently, however that doesn’t imply it’s now not going to be. Our plan is to construct in this program transferring ahead, getting increasingly Jamaican athletes concerned within the recreation,” he mentioned.
“If we will be able to qualify for this Video games having met for the primary time in September final 12 months, consider what we will be able to do the following 4 years with a correct program and correct investment.”
For the primary time in Olympic historical past, the island country certified in 3 bobsled occasions — the two-man bobsled, the ladies’s monobob and the four-man bobsled.
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