Kevin Kuske

Last updated

Kevin Kuske
2018-02-26 Frankfurt Flughafen Ankunft Olympiamannschaft-6043.jpg
Kuske in 2018
Personal information
NationalityGerman
Born (1979-01-04) 4 January 1979 (age 45)
Potsdam, East Germany
Height1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
Sport
CountryFlag of Germany.svg  Germany
Sport Bobsleigh
Event(s)4-man, 2-man
ClubBSR Rennsteig Oberhof (1999–2010)
BRC Riesa (2010–present)
Achievements and titles
Personal bestOlympic rings.svgGold medal icon.svgGold medal icon.svgGold medal icon.svgGold medal icon.svgSilver medal icon.svgSilver medal icon.svg
Medal record
Olympic Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2002 Salt Lake City Four-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2006 Turin Two-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2006 Turin Four-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2010 Vancouver Two-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2010 Vancouver Four-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2018 Pyeongchang Four-man
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2003 Lake Placid Two-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2003 Lake Placid Four-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2004 Königssee Four-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2005 Calgary Four-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2007 St. Moritz Two-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2008 Altenberg Two-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2008 Altenberg Four-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2005 Calgary Two-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2009 Lake Placid Four-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2011 Königssee Two-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2012 Lake Placid Four-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2004 Königssee Two-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2007 St. Moritz Four-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2012 Lake Placid Two-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2017 Königssee Four-man
European Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2002 Cortina d'AmpezzoFour-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2004 St. MoritzFour-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2006 St. MoritzTwo-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2007 Cortina d'AmpezzoFour-man
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2010 IglsFour-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2002 Cortina d'AmpezzoTwo-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2003 WinterbergTwo-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2006 St. MoritzFour-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2008 CesenaTwo-man
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg2010 IglsTwo-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg2004 St. MoritzTwo-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg2007 Cortina d'AmpezzoTwo-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg2008 CesanaFour-man
German Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2009 WinterbergFour-man
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg2009 WinterbergTwo-man
Men's athletics
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg1998 Annecy 4 x 100 metres

Kevin Kuske (born 4 January 1979) is a former German bobsledder who competed from 1999 to 2018. Competing in five Winter Olympics, he is the most successful Olympic athlete in bobsledding, winning four gold medals and two silver medals.

Contents

Career

Prior to his bobsleigh career, Kuske was a sprinter athlete, and won a bronze medal in 4 x 100 m at the 1998 World Junior Championships in Athletics.

At the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Kuske, along with teammates André Lange, Carsten Embach, Enrico Kühn, won the gold medal in the four-man event. Four years later in Turin, Kuske paired with Lange to win the gold medal in the two-man event, while those two, along with teammates René Hoppe and Martin Putze, won gold in the four-man event. Kuske won gold in the two-man and silver in the four-man event at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Kuske also has fifteen medals at the IBSF World Championships, including seven golds (two-man: 2003, 2007, 2008; four-man: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008), four silvers (two-man: 2005, 2011; four-man: 2009, 2012), and four bronzes (two-man: 2004, 2012; four-man: 2007, 2017).

After pilot André Lange's retirement in 2010, Kevin Kuske started with pilots Thomas Florschütz and Maximilian Arndt. With Florschütz, he competed at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi in both the two-man and four-man event, but failed to win any medals. After Florschütz and Arndt retired, Kuske joined the team of Nico Walther. In Walther's bobsleigh, Kuske won a silver medal in the four-man event at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, therefore becoming the most successful bobsledder in Olympic history. Immediately after the Games, he announced his retirement. [1]

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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.

References

  1. "Potsdamer Kevin Kuske ist nun erfolgreichster Bobfahrer der Welt". BZ Berlin (in German). 25 February 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.