Gold in GB's sights as world bobsleigh season begins

Experienced pilot Brad Hall (front) has been part of GB's four-man team at the past two Winter Olympic Games

Great Britain want to start their world bobsleigh season on a high to build momentum for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina, says crew member Arran Gulliver.

The season starts on Saturday, 7 December, with Team GB's first race in Altenberg, Germany.

They hope to hit top form before the IBSF World Championships at Lake Placid in the United States in March, which features bobsleigh and skeleton combined.

"Obviously the big one is the Olympics - we believe we can win a medal there," Gulliver, 27, told BBC Midlands Today.

"We want a gold medal. The best medal is the next one."

Leon Greenwood (left) and Arran Gulliver at their training base at the University of Bath

With the Winter Olympics one year and two months away, Team GB are aiming for their first bobsleigh gold since 1964.

The four-man team, known as GB1, were hit by injuries last season and only competed in half the year's races.

Gulliver and Leon Greenwood, who train at the University of Bath, joined the team during the 2022-23 season.

Following a training accident when Leon broke his toe, competitive opportunities were handed to Gulliver.

It was the season where the team went on to win Britain's first four-man world medal in 84 years, with silver in St Moritz in Switzerland behind Germany.

They also made history by being crowned European champions for the first time in Altenberg.

Brad Hall, Arran Gulliver, Leon Greenwood and Greg Cackett after their world silver medal in 2023

'We always want more funding'

The biggest challenge GB1 face is Germany, who spend about £2m a year on research and development alone.

In comparison, British Bobsleigh received £120,000 from UK Sport before Beijing.

For the Milan 2026 cycle, they have been awarded £2.8m after a £900,000 uplift in August 2023.

Despite this increase, Gulliver says they want their wages to rise in line with inflation.

"It's performance based - we have consistent medals coming in at championships," he said.

"We always want more funding - we know it will bring us better equipment. It's on us as the athletes to get those results.

"One of the issues we've been speaking about recently in the athletes' sphere is the performance awards, the money that comes directly to us, that supplement our wages and help us train full-time.

"They haven't changed for a long time now and an increase in them would be great," added Gulliver, who remains grateful for the current funding from UK Sport.

The money helped Greenwood, 27, quit his full-time job and focus on bobsleigh.

"I was working a full-time job, doing a 60-hour week and night shifts. One time I finished at 3am and then had to be on the track for 8am. It was tough," he said.

"We do get a little bit of funding and I'm grateful - it allowed me to leave my full-time job. If they want us to win that gold medal, that has to happen."