Winter Olympics: Team GB drop to seventh in four-man bobsleigh battle

Team GB face a difficult battle for a Winter Olympic medal in the four-man bobsleigh after dropping to seventh place at the halfway stage in Cortina.

Pilot Brad Hall initially demonstrated why the British crew are considered contenders with a superb first run of 54.39 seconds, placing them third.

However, the quartet fell off the pace in their second attempt, clocking 55.04secs to record the 12th-quickest time of the heat.

That loss of momentum saw them slide four places down the standings ahead of Sunday’s medal-deciding heats.

German dominance in Italy

The three German sleds remain the ones to beat, occupying the top three spots on the leaderboard.

Johannes Lochner, who already claimed two-man gold earlier this week, leads the charge with an overall time of one minute 48.61 seconds.

Hall’s crew currently sit on a combined time of 1:49.43, leaving them with significant ground to make up on the final day.

Crash delays competition

Proceedings at the Cortina sliding track were disrupted by a long delay after Austria suffered a crash during the second heat.

One athlete required treatment on the ice for a lengthy period before being stretchered off.

Action resumed after approximately 20 minutes, but rising temperatures meant the track had become slower for the later runners.

Consequently, the British team were unable to replicate the blistering speed of their opener in the deteriorating conditions.