Olympics
Get your lucky egg ready because Team Jamaica is sending a four-man bobsled team to the 2022 Olympics! The Jamaican Olympic bobsled team has been a popular team during the games, ever since the original four-man team debuted in 1988. After their appearance during those 1988 games, Disney picked up the story and made a movie, “Cool Runnings.” The movie was loosely based on the team’s struggles and successes in making it to the Olympics from a sunny snowless country. Even though the team never made it to the podium, the Jamaican Bobsled team has been popular.
However, the last time the Jamaican team had a four-man bobsled team was 1998. Until now. Jamaica is sending a four-man bobsled team to the 2022 Beijing Olympics this year.
Teammates Ashley Watson, Nimroy Turgott, Matthew Wilson, Shanwayne Stephens, and Rolando Reid began training just a year ago during the covid pandemic with a bobsled team in mind. Since gyms were closed during the pandemic, the team created and trained in an at-home gym, lifting buckets of stuff, timber, and cement, they even pushed cars as training. After all their hard work, they are stoked to be heading to the Olympics, bringing back Jamaica’s Bobsled team. They hope to resurrect the popular event for their country and maybe even podiuming.
The 2022 Olympics will be a big deal for the Jamaican team. Not only are they sending the four-man bobsled team, a woman’s mono bobsledder but also their first Giant Slalom racer Benjamin Alexander. For a country that never sees snow, this many athletes representing them in the Winter Olympics is a huge deal.
