Greg Cackett is determined to stand on the podium at Milano Cortina and hopes Olympic glory will grow bobsleigh’s nationwide popularity even further.
The 36-year-old will race in the four-man competition alongside Brad Hall, Taylor Lawrence, and Leon Greenwood, aiming to deliver the nation's first bobsleigh medal since Sochi 2014, this weekend.
The Redhill-born brakeman, and part-time content creator, comes into his third Olympics in the form of his life as a multiple European and world championship medallist.
“We are aiming for medals, nothing else, we’ve been in the top three teams for the entire Olympic cycle,” he said.
“Our stature and status have been rising progressively over the years, and everyone seems to be peaking at the right time.
“We are in this incredible position where we're so experienced, so fast, and we maximised our ability in the push.
“I'm just trying to soak up every second of the experience with this team, and I am literally itching to get to the start and race.”
Despite falling short of the medals, the Beijing 2022 Games marked the return of funding for the bobsleigh programme.
The team has received support from UK Sport and The National Lottery in the lead-up to Italy, resulting in better equipment and enhanced performance on the international stage.
Cackett was crucial to Brad Hall’s crew that won Britain’s first four-man World Championships medal in 84 years in 2023, and the squad’s camaraderie has only grown since then.
“It's just been the most wonderful career,” he added. “What we've done together as a group of lads has been really special.
“We’ve been through a lot together, from our unfunded days to the funded days, and we want to repay that faith by getting this medal over the line.
“There is a great part when you're walking to the block in your helmets, ready to go and smash into a 200-kilo sled and run off the mountain.
“When you're on the block about to push, you’ve only got each other at that point.
“I like to keep as much energy in as possible, so that it erupts out of me on the blocks.
“When I hear that call from Brad, all chaos is released, and we run as fast as we can, hoping we've done our job.”
A successful Olympiad will most certainly draw new fans to the sport, which Cackett has tirelessly promoted through his popular online platform ‘The Brakeman’.
While balancing elite training with content creation proved challenging, he remains committed to expanding bobsleigh’s reach and highlighting the contribution of every crew member in the sled.
“I am very proud of ‘The Brakeman’ because I was frustrated that most of the attention in bobsleigh goes to the pilot,” he said.
“We've got incredible transfer athletes, and we take some of the best from other sports.
“If you're looking for a new challenge, come and do bobsleigh. It's incredible. You're just lifting, jumping, throwing, and sprinting.
“I’ll keep waxing lyrical about bobsleigh every time I talk to people, I will take the message out of there.”