Winter Olympics Viewers Are Loving The Jamaican Bobsleigh Team After First Heats

It's the final week of this year's Winter Olympics and it's the moment we've all been waiting for: the Jamaican bobsleigh team.

Today (14 February) saw them complete the heats of the two-man event at the games in Beijing, with Shanwayne Stephens piloting the crew.

A lot of excitement has built up over the east few weeks, with people looking forward to seeing Jamaica back on the biggest sporting stage after the four-man team returned to the event after over 20 years.

Unfortunately, however, Stephens couldn't keep the pace with his opponents in the first couple of rounds of the two-man event, finishing 30th out of 30.

Jamaica's first run saw them 2.21 seconds off the lead, while their second saw them a further 1.99 off the pace.

This means that going into the third heat tomorrow, they are 4.20 seconds behind the German rider Francesco Friedrich, who leads the event.

But despite them not quite managing to set the event alight, it did nothing to dampen to spirits of their supporters.

People watching at home have been cheering them on, sharing words of support on social media.

One user said: "They might not win, but I love the matt finish of Jamaica's bobsled."

Echoing the positivity, another commented: "JAMAICA WE HAVE A BOBSLEIGH TEAM! We're rooting for you."

"Watching Jamaica’s bobsleigh teams makes me feel like anything is possible," put a third.

While another added: "Got to smile seeing Jamaica in the bobsleigh."

This year's games is a major milestone for Jamaica, as it is the first time the country will have a four-man bobsled team in 24 years, the last appearance being at the 1998 Nagano Olympics. 

Jamaica also qualified for the women's monobob bobsleigh events as well, which is the first time ever that the country has sent three bobsled teams to an Olympics.

The country narrowly missed out on a chance to also secure a spot in the two-woman bobsled event thanks to a tiebreak, however, they could still get in if another nation gives up their spot, according to NBC.

The four men previously scored a top-five finish at the lower level North American Cup.

Featured Image Credit: Twitter

Topics: Winter Olympics, China

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers is LADbible's Editorial Lead. After graduating from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History, he went on to write for the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express. So as you can imagine, he’s spent many a night wondering just how useful that second language has been. But c'est la vie.

@SmithersDom