Laura Nolte got off to a very strong start in the Olympic two-man bobsleigh race and immediately went for gold on her debut.
The third in the World Championships with her brakewoman Deborah Levi is clearly leading the field at half-time in front of Olympic champion Mariama Jamanka with track and field athlete Alexandra Burghardt. After a track record in the second run, the lead is already half a second.
The third German starter Kim Kalicki is in wait after two of four runs with Lisa Buckwitz in sixth (+1.34). Elana Meyers Taylor (USA) is third (+0.74). The medals will be awarded at the Yanqing Sliding Center on Saturday after the final two heats (from 13:00 CET/20:00 EST).
The German women are not yet on the podium in China. At the Olympic monobob premiere, Nolte (4th) and Jamanka (13th) disappointed on Monday.
If the duo now claims the first two places on Saturday, Team D would celebrate the first Olympic double victory for women – it would also be the third German gold in the double.
Before Jamanka 2018 only Sandra Kiriasis had triumphed at the 2006 games in Turin. Olympic medals in women’s bobsleigh have only been awarded since the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City.