With one more day of North American Cup (NAC) bobsledding to go in Whistler, Canadian women have grabbed nine out of nine medals so far.
Indeed, it was another Maple Leaf sweep with Bianca Ribi and Niamh Haughey's time of one minute and 47.54 seconds vaulting them to success. Erica Voss managed her third podium of the week in the runner-up spot with Eden Wilson on board (+0.26). Kristen Bujnowski and rookie back-seater Charlotte Ross achieved third (+0.43).
About Canada's continuing victories, Ribi said: "It's super exciting. It shows how strong our program is. [Niamh and I's] win today didn't come easy. I had to drive well, Niamh had to push us well, and without those two things we wouldn't have won because our fellow Canadians are so strong.
"It comes as no surprise that we're sweeping the podium race after race."
Not to be outdone, Taylor Austin clinched his third straight gold medal as a driver with Mark Zanette, Shane Ohrt and Yohan Eskrick-Parkinson pushing his four-man sled (1:43.92). Silver went to Cyrus Gray, Shaquille Murray-Lawrence, Davidson de Souza and Chris Holmstead (+0.54), while Brazil's Edson Luques Bindilatti piloted Rafael Souza Da Silva, Erick Jeronimo and Edson Ricardo Martins to bronze (+0.57).
The Australian units led by Cam Scott and Rhys Peters finished at the bottom of the table—eighth and ninth respectively—but they're celebrating their own meaningful milestone. Nov. 25, 2024 was the first time in 15 years that Australia deployed a pair of four-man sleds into any international race.
'We will win anyways'
Many of Canada's two-woman pairings have been shuffled up going into this year, but Ribi and Haughey are entering their third campaign together. Such familiarity helped them pull out the fastest women's push time of the day: 5.26 seconds.
"It's a lot more fun to push with friends, so I'm really happy that I could have Niamh in the sled with me," commented Ribi. "A nice change to have the fastest push in the field, so that definitely gives me a little bit more margin for error.
"Routine's really important. Niamh's going to keep the sled running the way I like. It gives me so much peace of mind from that end, and I can just fully focus on the drive. We really show up on race day and I can always expect that out of us."
Haughey added: "I respect Ribi entirely. As a brakeman, you're very disposable—in a polite way, I guess you could say. Luckily for Ribi and I: we get along off the ice just as much as on the ice. I have full [trust] that she's going to keep me safe. We've been in a little bit of a financial deficit this year, but…there's a quote that gets passed around: 'we will win anyways.'"
Recent weather conditions presented a bit of a hurdle to Voss and Wilson, but it was nothing they couldn't address.
"In our first run, there were a few nerves," admitted Voss. "We knew [the ice] was going to be faster and harder than what we've seen in training…and I was overthinking and overdriving a little bit. For the second run, I was like: 'I know what I'm doing. The track is still the same.'"
Wilson's unusual career trajectory bears mentioning here. A former equestrian athlete, she gained experience in the pilot's seat before reverting again to brakewoman—which many pilots don't do. Yet the Calgarian's faith in her teammate influenced her decision.
"As a show jumper-turned bobsledder, I came in here with eyes wide open," said Wilson. "I'm one of the very few who's [returned to the backseat after driving], but it's because I believe in Erica. I think she's going to go to the next Olympics and I would love to be with her."
'We found our souls'
Gray's gang represents a bit of an emerging subplot among Canadian men. They're typically vigorous off the start line, but were hungry for better results after an underwhelming National Championship performance in mid-November.
The quartet ripped off two sub-five second pushes on Monday (4.94 and 4.92), with only the Brazilians equalling that feat. Having said that, they were in fifth after run no. 1 and needed a dominant follow-up outing.
"I felt like we didn't put our all into [the first run], but we found our souls on that next one," remarked Murray-Lawrence, alluding to the fact that his crew improved on their first-run time by two-tenths of a second.
Likewise, Gray puts pressure on himself. "The mindset today was trying to get my guys on the podium, one way or the other. The guys were going to give it all they had, and I just needed to put the driving together."
One of the team's bigger personalities is de Souza, who is known for hyping up his compatriots and exhorting them to perform. The Sao Paulo native worked hard to leave the favela of his youth, and that same ambition makes him want the best for the people in his orbit.
"Cheering for my teammates is my job…one thing I have deep inside me," explained de Souza. "If I elevate everybody, that's how I can elevate myself, and getting a medal today was just the beginning of the game. I'm happy, but not content. We have to keep believing we can be the best ones out there. I don't think I would ever be satisfied until we go to the Olympics and actually get something meaningful."
Gray, Murray-Lawrence and de Souza pushed Austin to a World Cup four-man bronze in December 2022, and now they race against him. It's a full-circle moment, but Austin still reigns supreme for now.
He had plenty of help from first-year brakemen Zanette and Eskrick-Parkinson, plus Ohrt who shook off an ankle injury sustained last Friday to perform.
"The boys pushed well," Austin said. "They focused on trying to execute and have a good, consistent day—and they pushed faster on the second run. The biggest thing is having clear expectations of what our goals are. At the end of the day, it comes back to the process, making sure I give these guys the best information to have the best results possible."
Monday marked the first international bobsled race for ex-Team Jamaica diver Eskrick-Parkinson, and he couldn't be happier with how it unfolded.
"Feels really great, honestly," he remarked. "I think we've got a lot more in the tank. [Riding with Taylor] is hugely reassuring and I just trust him. Bobsled is a scary sport. A lot of people worry about what it's going to be like at the bottom, hitting corners and the possibility of tipping over, but I don't even think about that at all."
One more round of NAC bobsledding awaits tomorrow, on Nov. 26 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
