By Hannah Blackwell
Adelé Nicoll has set her sights on the 2026 Winter Olympics after a stunning ninth place finish in the monobob on her World Championship debut.
The Welsh athlete clocked a combined time of 3 minutes 56.14 seconds, moving up from her overnight position of 10th in Winterberg, Germany.
The 27-year-old only started driving after the Beijing Olympics in 2022 but she again showed she can be competitive against the world’s very best drivers as she targets success at the 2026 Games in Milan Cortina.
9th in the World 🌍🥹 Crazy!
First World Champs for me and it feels good to be proud of my performance.
Thank you @The_BBSA @mikeharristns and everyone else who helped to get me on that start block.
The road to Milan 2026 Olympic Games is well and truly underway ❄️ https://t.co/XJUiiOAtZj
— Adelé Nicoll (@adelenicoll) February 25, 2024
Nicoll beat a host of more experienced pilots in a 26-strong field, including the reigning World Champion in the Women’s Bobsleigh (Kim Kalicki); the current Junior World Champion in Monobob; a former Youth Olympic Champion and a total of seven Olympians and six World Cup medalists.
“World No.9 and British No.1! It’s a great feeling,” said Nicoll.
“The late nights and early mornings, the struggles, the tears, the silent battles – you have to be resilient as hell, but It’s worth it in the end.
“I can’t put into words the importance of the support that I’ve received to get here. Although I was standing on the start block alone, it takes an entire team.
“The road to Millan 2026 Olympic Games is well and truly underway. There’s no looking back now.”
“This has been my favourite season so far and I’ve made some amazing friends.
“It’s so nice to share experiences with amazing athletes who are genuinely happy for each other’s wins.
“To my break girls, my team mates, my friends, family and sponsors, ‘thank you’.
“To the British Bobsleigh & Skeleton Association; to UK Sport; and to my coaches, Graham Richardson and Sean Olsson, ‘thank you, too’.
Outstanding from @adelenicoll on her World Championship debut 👊
The back-to-back 🇬🇧 shot putt champion finishes 9th in a field of 26 in the monobob in Winterberg.
She’s only been driving for 2 seasons but beat a whole host of more experienced sliders 👏 pic.twitter.com/VPXg0BG1Zw
— British Bobsleigh and Skeleton Association (@The_BBSA) February 25, 2024
Defending Champion Laura Nolte (who is also the Olympic Champion in Women’s Bobsleigh) took gold for Germany as the home nation continued their dominance of the showpiece event of the season.
Nolte’s win follows titles for Christopher Grotheer in the Men’s Skeleton and Grotheer and Hannah Neise in the Skeleton Team Race, with German sleds celebrating a clean sweep of the medals in the 2-man Bobsleigh later on on Sunday.
Elena Meyers Taylor secured silver for the United States of America, with overnight leader Lisa Buckwitz giving Germany a second medal of the race by beating Bree Walker of Australia to bronze.
Nicoll’s World Championships continue when she slides with Kya Placide in the Women’s Bobsleigh next Friday and Saturday.
This year’s World Championships take place in Winterberg, Germany from February 22nd – March 3rd, with the schedule as follows:
Thurs 22 – Sun 25 Feb
Women’s Skeleton: Stoecker 4th; Coltman 6th
Men’s Skeleton: Weston 2nd; Wyatt 4th; Thompson 8th
Skeleton Mixed Team Competition: Stoecker & Weston 2nd; Coltman & Wyatt 4th
Women’s Monobob: Nicoll 9th
2-man Bobsleigh: Hall & Lawrence 4th; Stanbridge & Hullah 23rd
Fri 1 Mar
Women’s Bobsleigh Heats 1&2 2pm
Sat 2 Mar
4-man Bobsleigh Heats 1&2 9am
Women’s Bobsleigh Heats 3&4 1.30pm
Sun 3 Mar
4-man Bobsleigh Heats 3&4 1pm
All races will be shown live on the IBSF YouTube channel and website
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