- Jamaica national bobsled team
The Jamaican Bobsled Team first gained fame during their debut in the
1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary,Alberta ,Canada .Origins
Two Americans were largely responsible for the founding of the Jamaican Bobsled Team.
George B. Fitch and William Maloney had family and business ties toJamaica and after witnessing apushcart derby they realized that it was very similar to bobsledding. [ [http://www.devonharrislive.com/olympian.html Interview with Devon ‘Pele’ Harris Jamaica Bobsled Team Member] ]Since bobsledding requires a fast start, Maloney and Fitch decided to use sprinters who are plentiful on the island nation of Jamaica. They originally tried to recruit Olympic-class sprinters but no one was interested so they presented their idea to Colonel Ken Barnes of the Jamaican military.
The first five members of the Jamaican bobsled team were:
*Devon Harris , a Lieutenant in the Second Battalion, Jamaican Army
*Dudley Stokes , a captain from the JDF Air Wing
*Aiden Van de Mortel , Main Pilot
*Michael White, a private in the National Reserves
*Samuel Clayton , a railway engineerThey were coached by New York nativeHoward Siler , ofMalone, New York .Olympics
The Jamaican four man Bobsled team debuted at the
1988 Winter Olympics inCalgary, Alberta .The team returned to the Olympics In the
1992 Winter Olympics inAlbertville, France . The Jamaicans stunned many of their critics by finishing in 14th place, ahead of theUnited States ,Russia ,France andItaly . The two man team finished in tenth place, beating the Swedish team.In 2000 the Jamaicans won the
Gold medal at the World Push Bobsled Championships.The Jamaican Bobsled Team failed to qualify for the
2006 Winter Olympics inTurin, Italy .The Jamaicans do plan on having a bobsled team for the
2010 Winter Olympics inVancouver, British Columbia .The 1988 team was the inspiration for a major motion picture, "
Cool Runnings " featuringJohn Candy as the team's coach. The characters in the film are all fictional, and loosely based on the real team.Current Jamaican Bobsled Lineup
The current Jamaican Bobsled Team is:
*Captain/Driver: Winston Watt
*Brake Man: Thomas Wayne
*Brake Man: Clive McDonald
*Skeleton: Ricky SimmsSee also
*
Cool Runnings
*Tropical nations at the Winter Olympics Notes
External links
* [http://www.jamaicans.com/bobsled/ Jamaicans.com]
* [http://www.jambob.com/ Official Website for the Jamaican Bobsled Team]
* [http://www.jamaicanbobsled.com/index2.htm Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation]
* [http://nlp4now.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=109&Itemid=102 Video Interview With Devon Harris]
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