Laura Nolte and Deborah Levi Repeat Beijing Success. German Duo Wins Gold in Two-Woman Bobsleigh

Laura Nolte and Deborah Levi stood on the highest step of the Olympic podium for the second time in a row. The German duo, which caused a surprise in Beijing four years ago, this time performed as the favorite and perfectly fulfilled their task on the track in Cortina d'Ampezzo. Nolte, who a week earlier lost a certain gold in the monobob competition by just four hundredths of a second, this time kept her cool until the very end. The Germans' success was sealed by using a specially modified bobsleigh originally intended for men, which was supposed to provide better aerodynamics. The winners' advantage over the second duo, also from Germany (Lisa Buckwitz and Neele Schuten), was 0.53 seconds. Third place was taken by USA representative Kaillie Humphries, for whom this was her fifth Olympic medal in her career. The American strengthened her position among the most decorated athletes in bobsleigh history. The Polish crew, consisting of Klaudia Adamek and Linda Weiszewski, finished the competition in 18th place, maintaining the position held after the first runs. The German bobsleigh school has dominated the world's ice channels for decades, resulting from huge investments in technology and close cooperation with automotive companies in designing runners and sled aerodynamics. For Laura Nolte and Deborah Levi, the gold medal confirms their status as the best female duo in recent years. Their victory was part of a broader dominance of the German bobsleigh team, which earlier in the four-man event achieved a one-two finish, taking the top two steps of the podium. The competition in Cortina also showed that despite the passing years, 40-year-old Kaillie Humphries still belongs to the world's elite, although a mistake when entering the sled in one of the runs cost her a chance to fight for higher positions than the bronze medal.