Bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics

Bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics: Bobsleigh is a winter sport. The origin of the sport can be traced back to the nineteenth century Switzerland. The aim of the sport is to race down a narrow, twisting, iced track in a sleigh, which moves only by gravity-power. In the United States of America and Canada, bobsleigh is also known as "bobsled". Initially, the races were held on the roads covered with snow. The Federation Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing or the FIBT governs the sport at the international level.

Bobsleigh in the Winter Games: Bobsleigh was one of the sports contested at the 1924 Chamonix Winter Games. The only event contested at the first appearance was a four-man event. At the 1928 Games, the event was a five-man event. The sport was dropped from the Olympic schedule at the 1960 Squaw Valley Games. After the 1932 Winter Olympics, men started competing in two events. Bobsleigh was included in the women's program at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. The events contested at the Winter Games are

• Men's two-man bobsleighing event
• Men's four-man bobsleighing event
• Women's two-man bobsleighing event

Rules of Bobsleigh: The Federation Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing or the FIBT sets rules for the international competitions of bobsleighing. Some of the rules are

• The length of the bobsleigh run is specified by the FIBT rule-book. In the Olympic competitions, the length of the race is generally 1500 meter.
• The number of turns on the bobsleighing course can be 15 or 20.
• The structure of the running course and the sleighs used during the competition are predetermined by the FIBT.
• Use of any performance enhancing drug during the competition is forbidden.
• All the equipments used during bobsleigh competitions have to be approved by the FIBT.
• Heats are arranged during the competition, and the winners of the heats only move forward to the next round.
• Wearing a fully protective helmet is a must for the participants of the bobsleigh competition.

Medal winners in Bobsleigh: Switzerland, Germany, the United States of America, Russia and Italy are some of the leading nations at the international level of bobsleigh. Andre Lange, Kevin Kuske, Pierre Lueders, Martin Annen, Christoph Langen, Lascelles Brown, Beat Hefti, Sandra Kiriasis and Anja Schneiderheinze are some of the leading players at the bobsleighing event.