Jamaica bobsled team chasing best-ever Olympics finish in 2-man competition originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Jamaican bobsled team always garners a bit of extra attention at the Winter Olympics.
That’s the case as usual in 2026 in Italy, when they were even interviewed by Snoop Dogg during the Opening Ceremonies.
Now with competition underway, Jamaica is looking to improve upon its history in the event.
The best-ever men’s bobsled finish for a Jamaican team was a 14th-place finish.
Halfway home in the men’s two-man race, Jamaica has a chance to better that.
Through two of four runs, Jamaica is in 23rd place. The team in 13th place is 1.39 seconds ahead.
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The Jamaican duo of Shane Pitter and Junior Harris would need two better runs than they’ve had to make up that ground, but not by a whole lot, just little improvements here and there.
There is an even more important aspect to the third run, though, and that’s the progression rule: The top-20 competitors get to do the final run.
Jamaica will have to make up a gap of eight-tenths of a second, and four teams in front of them, to get to the top-20 and get a crack at a higher finishing position.
If it doesn’t happen in the two-man, Jamaica will still race in the four-man event, too.
It’d bring a lot of momentum into that event if Jamaica can first gain some time in the two-man race, with Pitter and Harris also part of the plans for the four-man.
The medal contention in the two-man competition is led by three German teams halfway through the event, but for teams like Jamaica, there is still plenty to race for in Tuesday’s second half even if a medal is out of reach.
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