 Strenga in 2014 on his return from the 2014 Winter Olympics | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Latvian |
| Born | 16 February 1988 [1] Sigulda, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union (now Sigulda, Latvia) [2] |
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) [1] |
| Weight | 84 kg (185 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Country | Latvia |
| Sport | Bobsleigh |
| Event | Four-man |
| Turned pro | 2008 |
Janis Strenga (born 5 February 1986) is a former Latvian bobsledder, brakeman who has competed since 2008. [1]
He won a gold medal in the four-man event at the FIBT World Championships 2016 in Igls, Austria (with pilot Oskars Melbārdis, Daumants Dreiškens and Arvis Vilkaste). It was the first ever World Championships gold medal in bobsled for Latvia.
He also won a bronze medal in the four-man event at FIBT World Championships 2015 in Winterberg, Germany as well as 2012 World Junior Championship title at both two-man and four-man events.
Strenga competed in 2014 Winter Olympics at Sochi and won a gold medal in the four-man event. He became the four-man European Champion in 2015 and finished 3rd in the four-man event in 2016 Bobsleigh European Championship. At the 2014–15 Bobsleigh World Cup season Strenga as Oscars Melisande brakeman has 8 from 8 podium finishes in four-man events, including five first places.
Pierre Fritz Lueders is a Canadian Olympic, world and World Cup champion bobsledder who competed from 1990 to 2010. He piloted both two-man and four-man bobsleigh, retiring after the 2010 Winter Olympics. He was named to Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.
Martins Dukurs is a former Latvian skeleton racer, currently a coach, who has competed since 1998. He is a six-time world champion in men's skeleton, a double Olympic silver winner, and the athlete with the most World Cup titles with a total of 11, having won eight consecutive titles between 2010 and 2017, plus another three consecutive titles between 2020 and 2022.
Jānis Miņins is a Latvian bobsledder who has competed since 1999. He won a bronze medal in the four-man event at the FIBT World Championships 2009 in Lake Placid, New York, earning the country its first championship medal ever.
Thomas Lamparter is a Swiss former bobsledder who has competed since 2002. Competing in three Winter Olympics, he won a bronze medal in the four-man event at Turin in 2006 as part of the crew of Martin Annen.
Wolfgang Zimmerer is a retired West-German bobsledder who mostly competed as a driver together with his brakeman Peter Utzschneider. Zimmerer took part in the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Winter Olympics and won four medals, with one gold, one silver, and two bronzes.
Peter Utzschneider is a retired West German bobsledder who mostly competed as a brakeman together with Wolfgang Zimmerer. They competed at the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Winter Olympics and won three medals, with one gold, and two bronzes.
Meinhard Nehmer is a former East German bobsledder who competed from the mid-1970s to the early 1980s. Competing in two Winter Olympics, he won four medals with three golds and one bronze. Nehmer also carried the East German flag during the opening ceremonies of the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck.
Jānis Ķipurs is a Latvian bobsledder who competed for the Soviet Union in the late 1980s. At the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, he won two medals with a gold in the two-man event and a bronze in the four-man event.
Felix Endrich was a Swiss bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Competing in two Winter Olympics, he won the gold medal along with brakeman Fritz Waller in the two-man event at the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz.
Ion Panţuru was a Romanian bobsledder. He competed in two-man and four-man events at the 1964, 1968, 1972 and 1976 Olympics and served as the Olympic flag bearer for Romania in 1964 and 1972.
Daumants Dreiškens is a Latvian bobsledder, brakeman, who has competed since 2003.
Justin Kripps is a Canadian bobsledder and an Olympic champion in two-man bobsleigh following his gold medal win at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Kripps won a silver medal in the two-man event at the 2017 World Championships and a bronze in the mixed team event at the 2012 World Championships. He has competed in the sport since 2006 and has many World Cup podiums. During the 2017–18 Bobsleigh World Cup, he finished the season first in the two-man and overall, to win the Crystal Globe as overall champion.
Oskars Melbārdis is a former Latvian bobsledder who has competed since 2006. He is the most successful bobsledder in the history of his country, having won one gold and two bronze Olympic medals. He also earned the first-ever gold medal for Latvia at World Championships in Igls, preceded by one silver and two bronze medals in 2009–2015.
The two-man bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia on 20–21 February. The German team of André Lange and Kevin Kuske were the defending Olympic champions in this event. Switzerland's team of Ivo Rüegg and Cedric Grand were the defending world champions in this event. The test event held at the Olympic venue was won by the German duo of Thomas Florschütz and Marc Kühne. The last World Cup event prior to the 2010 Games took place in Igls, Austria on 23 January 2010 and was won by the Swiss duo of Beat Hefti and Thomas Lamparter while Rüegg won the overall World Cup in the two-man event.
The four-man bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia, on 26–27 February. The German team of André Lange, René Hoppe, Kevin Kuske, and Martin Putze were the defending Olympic champion in this event. America's team of Steve Holcomb, Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler, and Curtis Tomasevicz were the defending world champions in this event. The test event was won by the Latvian team of Jānis Miņins, Daumants Dreiškens, Oskars Melbardis, and Intars Dambis. The last World Cup event prior to the 2010 Games place took place in Igls, Austria on 24 January 2010 and was won by the German team of Lange, Hoppe, Kuske, and Putze. Holcomb of the United States won both the four-man and the combined World Cups.
Fabienne Meyer is a Swiss former bobsledder who has been competing since 2005.
Christopher Spring is an Australian-Canadian 4 x Olympic bobsledder who has competed since 2008. At the 2010 Winter Olympics, he competed for Australia in the two-man event. He switched allegiance to Canada later in 2010 and has since competed in the 2014 Winter Olympics, 2018 Winter Olympics and the 2022 Winter Olympics for Canada.
Arvis Vilkaste is a Latvian bobsledder, brakeman who has competed since 2010.
The European Bobsleigh and Skeleton Championships are the main bobsleigh and skeleton championships in Europe. The first bobsleigh European Championships with two-man event was held in 1929 in Davos, Switzerland. However, as Bobsleigh World Championships started to be held on an annual basis since following year, European Championships didn't resumed until 1965. A four-man event was included in 1967 when first combined championship occurred. The men's European Skeleton Championships were held separately in 1981–1988 before resuming in 2003 when women's skeleton event was added as well. In 2004 the first women's European Bobsleigh Championship was held with two-woman event. The following year both the women's bobsleigh and skeleton events were merged with the men's bobsleigh events at the European Championships. Since then, all bobsleigh and skeleton events are usually competes at the same time and venue. Women's monobob event was included in 2022.
Won Yun-jong is a South Korean bobsledder.
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