Laura Deas may not be able to fly under the radar anymore following last season’s performances but on the eve of the new skeleton campaign, she is adamant she can cope with the pressure.
Previously a professional event rider, Deas enjoyed a breakthrough season last year, including bagging two medals competing on the World Cup circuit for the first time.
The signs were already promising a year ago when she won British Skeleton’s selection races, while performances on the World Cup scene – which saw her finish fifth overall – were backed up by a seventh-place finish at the World Championships.
But while competitors were starting to sit up and take note, Deas was not the main draw on Great Britain women’s team – that honour instead falling to Olympic champion Lizzy Yarnold who completed an impressive career ‘grand slam’ with World Championship gold in March.
However with Yarnold opting to take a 12-month break from skeleton in order to recharge ahead of starting the journey to defend her Olympic title in 2018, Deas is now Great Britain’s number one slider going into the 2015-2016 season – not that she is feeling weighed down by the responsibility.
“I will miss Lizzy, we are really good friends so from that respect I will miss her,” said Deas, who is joined on the World Cup team by Intercontinental Cup champion Donna Creighton.
“But I am very friendly with Donna as well so I am hoping it will be a nice atmosphere on the World Cup this year so I am really looking forward to it.
“It was a breakthrough season for me last year, I did not really know what to expect and I don’t think anyone else knew what to expect from me either.
Iit was all new, new coach, new circuit, new Olympic cycle, in terms of this year there are things that I have done there and done before.
“There may be a little more expectation as well as I feel less of the underdog than I did last year for sure.
“But the processes have not changed and I feel pretty confident that I can back up the results that I got year with a few more medals and onto the podium.”
This weekend sees the first World Cup race of the season in Altenberg, with the women competing on Friday.
And ahead of another busy campaign which culminates with the World Championships, Deas cant wait to get stuck in.
“It is has been a very long but productive pre-season, we have been in training since the beginning of May, it is a long time lifting, running and dreaming of being back on the ice,” she added.
“This year we have the World Championships in February. I know I have got all the tools in my armory to go out there and get a medal.
“All the girls I am going to be competing against I know that I am competitive with them, I have either beaten them or come close to beating them in the past.”
Sportsbeat 2015