Swiss driver withdraws for safety reasons after two crashes on Olympic track, brakeman injured

Swiss driver pulls out of bobsled events

WHISTLER, British Columbia — Swiss driver Daniel Schmid has withdrawn from the Olympic two-man and four-man bobsled competitions “for safety reasons” after two practice crashes.

A statement said Schmid will not compete in either event and that the decision for him to drop out was made jointly between the Swiss team and bobsled officials. It’s still not known if Schmid had a role in deciding not to race.

Schmid, who was not a medal favorite, overturned his sled during Friday’s first training session. His brakeman, Juerg Egger, was injured and taken from the Whistler Sliding Center track in an ambulance, then transported by helicopter to Vancouver for observation.

Swiss team doctor Christian Schlegel said the 28-year-old was not seriously injured.

“He has no severe injuries,” Schlegel said. “He has a cervical spine injury. He can walk. He has no motor function disruption.”

It was also unclear if Schmid was hurt in the crash, one of three during the day’s first practice session.

Schmid’s withdrawal leaves the Swiss with only one of their three two-man sleds in the field. Earlier, Swiss-1 driver Beat Hefti, a gold-medal favorite and World Cup champion, withdrew from two-man because of a concussion sustained in a crash on Wednesday.

There were three crashes in Friday’s first run, but all the racers who took their second training runs made it down the track safely.

Schmid has had previous problems on Whistler’s 16-turn track, which has been under scrutiny for its speed and safety following the death of Georgian men’s luger Nodar Kumarishtavili. In a World Cup event here last year, Schmid crashed his four-man sled, failing to finish after his sled turned over not far from the start.

Hefti sustained a cut to his leg when his sled flipped on Wednesday night. Hefti’s crash was one of eight during the first training sessions, adding to concerns about safety at the track.

It’s still unclear if Hefti will participate in the four-man competition. He planned to push driver Ivo Rueegg’s sled.

Canada’s Pierre Lueders was sorry to learn that he wouldn’t race against the well-liked Hefti.

“It’s a tough thing to have happen especially when you work all year for the Olympics, whether it’s him or anybody,” Lueders said. “It’s disappointing. You want to race against a full field. It’s really unfortunate.”

U.S. driver Steve Holcomb hopes none of the other top drivers drop out — because of an injury, a crash or any safety concerns.

“It is the Olympics, and it would be a bummer to have half of the field go out because of crashes,” he said. “Who wants to be Olympic champion because you’re the only person who finished? It would be awesome to be a champion, but we want to have good competition.”

The luge, skeleton and bobsled competitions are all being held on this same speedy track, designed to be the world’s fastest. But since Kumarishtavili’s death there has been speculation that it is too technically difficult for some drivers, especially from the smaller, lesser-funded countries.

Part of the issue surrounding the bobsled crashes revolves around how the ice has been cut on the Olympic track.

Ice for luge races typically is made to be rounder in curves, while bobsledders and skeleton racers prefer a more squarely cut line in corners. To the casual fan, the difference is practically imperceptible. But to sliders, it’s a major deal, if only because it’s easier for bobsleds and skeleton sleds to be thrown off-line with the extra ice on curves.

Still, that alone doesn’t constitute a safety problem.

And it isn’t an issue typically during World Cup competitions.

Bobsled and skeleton races happen together, while luge races by itself. All three disciplines usually sharing the same track for competition only once every four years — at the Olympics.

Another element sometimes overlooked in the crashes in this sport is the expense of replacing — or fixing — damaged bobsleds, which can in excess of $100,000.

“These are expensive pieces of equipment that we’re destroying,” Holcomb said. “Some of these guys own them themselves. Mine are on loan. Imagine borrowing your friend’s car and then trashing it. You know, ‘Sorry, I wrecked it. My bad.’ It’s not easy to go back and say, ‘Sorry, I trashed your $60,000 two-man. Can I get another one real quick?’”