Bruce Tasker: Team GB bobsleigher announces retirement
- Published
Team GB bobsleigher Bruce Tasker switched from a career in athletics in 2010
British bobsleigher Bruce Tasker has announced his retirement as an athlete after "a ridiculously fun few years".
Tasker, originally from Pembrokeshire, competed in the four-man bobsleigh at the 2014 Winter Olympics and is set to receive a retrospective bronze medal.
He missed this year's Pyeongchang games after suffering a minor stroke.
Posting on social media,, external the 31-year-old said: "I have been meaning to post this for a while, but I guess I've been putting it off."
He added: "I've met and worked with some incredible people, made life-long friends, travelled to some amazing places and if I may try to be profound, grown as a person."
Tasker (second from left) is set to be awarded a retrospective bronze medal from the 2014 Winter Olympics
Former track athlete Tasker finished fifth in Sochi alongside John James Jackson, Stuart Benson and Joel Fearon.
But after The International Olympic Committee disqualified bobsledders in two Russian crews, they are in line to be upgraded to the bronze medal position.
As well as a Winter Olympics, Tasker competed at six World Championships.
He was part of a four-man crew that achieved fifth-place finishes at three successive global championships.
He was also part of the team that won the silver at the World Cup event in Lake Placid in 2013.
His latest achievement came in November 2017, when he won won a World Cup bronze at Park City, Utah along with Bradley Hall, Greg Cackett and Joel Fearon.
Bruce has had an outstanding career," said British Bobsleigh Head Coach, Lee Johnston. "When he first arrived here we knew he was going to be the total package. And at no time has that ever changed.
"He was heavily involved in some of the country's biggest success stories in recent years and he made a massive impression as both a driver and a push athlete.
"It's not exaggerating to say that there are very few British bobsleigh athletes that have achieved so much as both a brakeman and a pilot at the same time: Bruce got world-class results in the back of the sled and in the front.
"Just as importantly, he had a huge impact as a person. He was 'Mr Bobsleigh'. Everything he did, he did for the good of the team. He had a big presence in the squad and was respected by all his team mates and the staff, both on and off the ice.
"Bruce's stroke was a big setback for him personally and for the team but his disappointment didn't stop him coming to the hotel to wish everyone all the best before we flew to PyeongChang. That shows the true measure of the man.
"For me, Bruce Tasker epitomises what is required to be a bobsleigher. He is a true professional, a true athlete and, more importantly, a true gent.
"He will be missed greatly but we back his decision 100 per cent. We know he will stay in touch and we hope to welcome him back into the fold in another capacity in the not too distant future."
Bruce Tasker was due to compete in his second Olympic Games in Pyeongchang