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Team Bobsleigh Brad Film #MeetTheTeam #SoundOnLoud
After the 2019/2020 IBSF World Cup Season came to a close, Team Bobsleigh Brad (GB1) finished the season with a multitude of medals, top 10 finishes and a global ranking of 6th place
It was a huge success, and was only possible because of the immensely strong bond of our crew, the never-say-die attitude of our pilot, and our unbelievably supportive family of private sponsors
It has certainly not been an easy journey
In 2019 our team was cut from UK Sport funding. A decision made after a lacklustre 2018 Olympics where we didn't deliver a medal
In fact, despite being recognised as one of the best starting crews in the world, and putting together 4 competitive drives, we found no speed and finished 16th
A disaster.
THE REASON FOR THAT PERFORMANCE?
Sadly some mis-managed funds from our governing body (BBSA) resulted in us not investing in the development of kit, (sleds and runners).
This resulted in a lack of speed down the track compared to the rest of the world, and meant that we suffered the public humiliation of that Olympic result - for many of us, our first Winter Olympic Games.
And we had no control over it.
FIAT starting a Formula One team, and forcing their drivers to use decades-old 1 litre Puntos
This was the reality of our last Olympic cycle, and a challenge which no team could overcome, regardless of their ability
FAST FORWARD ONE YEAR
We took matters into our own hands and after some athlete-led crowd-funding success (thanks to supporting exposure from the BBC) gave us the means to rent a competitive sled and runners, we finished 4th at the 2019 World Championships in Whistler, Canada.
This was an enormous improvement on our previous World's best of 12th Place.
After the 2018's Olympic disappointment, UK Sport had tasked us with a medal at these World Championships to justify continued support.
4th wasn't good enough.
We weren't deterred.
This result showed we always had the world-class athletes + the ability to endure and persevere through the tough times (all prerequisites for a bobsledder!)
The missing piece was the equipment, and at this early stage of our journey to the top, we showed the world, the previous management and most importantly, ourselves, that we had the means to achieve greatness when all aspects of performance were taken care of.
INVEST IN THE EQUIPMENT
From here we believed that, if we just had the right support, we could channel that funding where it was needed most, supporting the athletes with basic living costs, and primarily, investing in world-class kit.
We were always going to be playing catch up to the might of the German bobsledding research programme, but with the correct funds we knew we could buy 'off the shelf' and get pretty damn close
This season (2019/2020) and with the support of some kind donors and sponsors, we managed to purchase a new 4-man sled and fully purchase the rented 2-man we used at the 2019 World Championships.
We're passionate about our sport, our team, and we believe in the sacrifice and dedication that all of our guys have made to make winter sporting history for our nation
The result of our self-funded efforts?
A 2-MAN GB RECORD SILVER MEDAL
A GB record finish as pilot Brad Hall and brakeman Greg Cackett crash the German party at the Igls, Austria World Cup
MEDALS
MEDALS
MEDALS
BEST EVER 4-MAN FINISH
Top 8, 4-man World Championships finish
Team bobsleigh brad Global Ranking Last 3 Seasons In Numbers:
Olympic year 2018 (With UK Sport): 2 Man - 34th | 4 Man - 13th
2018/2019 (2 Man Self-Funded): 2 Man - 12th | 4 Man - 17th
2019/2020* (Totally Self-Funded): 2 Man - 6th | 4 Man - 12th
*Due to not having the funds to compete in North America at the start of the year, we were actually 2 races down on everyone this season which made our final points haul even more spectacular
And this is just the beginning.
EYES ON THE PRIZE FOR THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN BEIJING 2022
And we need your help!
We've looked at a specific set of companies who we feel match our core beliefs, our values and would work in parallel to enrich both parties on our journey to Olympic glory
You are one of them and we would love to work with you
We are in a unique phase in our history, no official funding or support from anyone but private donors
This means we have unprecedented control and autonomy over the packages we agree with our amazing sponsors
We are absolutely on track for Olympic medal success in 2022 and now is the best time for a company to get involved with us