Marcus Wyatt may be down but he is certainly not out of the skeleton medal race despite sitting more than half-a-second back at the half-way stage.
Matt Weston leads the way overnight after the first two runs, having set track records on both occasions in Cortina as he eyes an historic gold.
Teammate Wyatt hopes to join him on the podium but has work to do after the first two runs on Thursday morning, though he is far from out of it.
The 34-year-old is seventh, 1.12 seconds back from Weston, and 0.66s back from Germany’s Christopher Grotheer, who is currently on course for bronze.
Grotheer’s teammate Axel Jungk is second, 0.30s back from Weston.
Wyatt has won two World Cup events this season and expects to come roaring back through the field now he is accustomed to the ice.
“I would like to have done a bit better. There were a few mistakes on both runs,” he said.
“It just cost me some time. As you can see it's super close and mistakes in some of those key areas do cost time.
“So go back, review with coaches and hopefully come back stronger and pick up a few spots tomorrow.
“It's definitely not done and tomorrow is an important day. I'm definitely capable of picking up some of that time and fixing those mistakes.
“It's just a case of executing tomorrow when it matters most. I'm not going to chase, I'm not going to try and think drastic. I'm just going to turn up and do what I try and do every time.”
Wyatt is at his second Winter Olympic Games and the contrast between his first in Beijing, which took place during the Covid pandemic, and here in Cortina is vast.
HRH Princess Anne was here watching, while family and friends have piled over from Devon.
“It is really special. I have worked my entire life to be here and to go to the Olympics and have no one there was tough,” he added.
“To have them all here supporting me is special, it means so much. It is a great feeling.
“Matt and I work together so well. We share everything we do on the track. We’ve been sharing rooms, sharing beds, for the last six or seven years
“It is really cool that we can be experiencing these things together. We have both helped each other to get to where we are now.
“We’ve pushed each other whether it’s in the gym or in the track. That’s why we have had success up until now. We push each other and make each other better.”
2010 Olympic champion Amy Williams expects Wyatt to bring his A game on Friday, with the third run starting at 6.30pm UK time.
"Marcus will be going through his lines, he actually had really strong starts in both runs,” she said on TNT Sports.
“I'd love to listen to the chat he's having with his coaches. So yes, there's tiny tine little things he can work on, but in a sport where those errors do add up, he has got some areas for improvement, that he could perfect.
“But I honestly think Marcus and Matt will have a good chat over a cup of tea maybe in the ice bath and help each other out. I also feel day one is done, so nerves have settled."
Sportsbeat 2026