New British Bobsleigh Boost from
Race Car Company, Lola
In a welcome boost for the sport, just as the bobs were being shipped to the Salt Lake City Winter Games – where Britain is defending a bronze medal in the 4 man bob from 1998 – the Bobsleigh squad now has direct access to leading edge, world beating motor sport technology.
Lola Cars International Ltd, the world’s leading racing car designer and constructor, has placed substantial resources within its design, technology and manufacturing capability behind the British bobsleigh team. Lola, whose cars won 3 Championships around the world in 2001 alone, has already made certain modifications to the existing 4-man equipment, GB1 and GB2 first run at La Plagne in a World Cup round this past weekend.
"Lola Cars International Ltd are used to winning – we’ve been doing that in Europe and around the world, at Indianapolis, in Le Mans sports car racing and in Formula 3000, since 1958", said Christopher Tate, Sales Director of Lola. "We have some of the world’s most creative designers, engineers, craftsmen and aerodynamicists, whose skills the BBA – and the bob drivers and athletes – believe to be highly relevant to the sport of bobsleigh. We already make have other involvement’s in non-motorised sports – we are making winning singles in rowing sculls – so this is our next step. However, we are also realists and this is just the first small step in a long programme".
He continued:- " We have a carefully crafted five year plan which all parties believe can take us to the top, with the clear target of a gold medal at Turin in 2006 – and some World Cup wins along the way".
Bruce Ropner, Chairman of the BBA, welcomed the new technical agreement. "This is just what we need. Our bob drivers and athletes are already world class in terms of their physical, competitive and mental approach. Now this agreement with Lola Cars International Ltd should give us, over the years to come, the extra speed we need to compete with the world’s best. This next month in Salt Lake City, we will be watched by top designers and engineers from Lola, studying the effects of what they have already done in modifications - and working with us to plan the technological future of British bobsleigh."
Neil Scarisbrick, driver of GB1 in the 4 man squad, said:- " We’ve already had a day at Lola’s headquarters, seeing their fantastic technical resources, their wind-tunnel and their design capability and hearing some of their ideas. Now, we have run GB1 with some of the first Lola changes. It’s been great during our Salt Lake preparations to know all this is coming along. Lola leads the world in all sorts of racing around the globe, and I look forward to winning in a Lola bob in the years to come".
After the Salt Lake Games, further media announcements will be made at Lola’s HQ, as well as in London with other new partners, before the winter 2002/3 bobsleigh season, the FIBT World Cup, begins.