British bobsleigh duo Nicola Minichiello and Gillian Cooke believe they can claim a gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics despite having had less practice on the track than some of their chief rivals.
The duo arrive at
Whistler as the reigning world champions, but have suffered an interrupted preparation as Minichiello only recently had laser surgery after losing 80 per cent of the sight in her left eye.
Meanwhile, they have had to travel around to train as Britain has no bobsleigh track and Cooke has had to overcome an embarrassing moment when her suit recently burst open and her bottom was exposed in St Moritz.
Despite these setbacks and a lack of training on the Whistler course, the pair have the confidence that their focus for the last four years will help them in their quest for another gold medal.
According to the Sun, Minichiello said: "The Canadians have had 700 runs down the track, we've had 41. But for four years my whole life has been building up to this.
"I've had three bouts of laser surgery and I'm almost back to 100 per cent."
The women's bobsleigh is one of the later events on the 2010 Winter Olympics schedule, with the heats not beginning until February 23rd.
Written by Chris Smith
