Jackson delivers World Cup silver in Lake Placid

John Jackson - still not fully fit after an Achilles injury that looked to have derailed his Olympic ambitions - piloted Great Britain's four man bobsleigh crew to their first World Cup podium in 16 years.

He delivered a shock silver in Lake Placid, finishing just 0.07 seconds behind Steven Holcomb, the American driver on his home track. Thomas Florschuetz's first choice Germany sled completed the podium.

Jackson was joined by Stuart Benson, Bruce Tasker and Joel Fearon - who also provided the start line firepower when he announced his Olympic credentials with a fifth place at this year's World Championships in St Moritz.

And considering he is still not pushing at full capacity, all looks good for Sochi, where Britain will look to win their first bobsleigh medal since Sean Olsson's four man bronze at the 1998 Nagano Games.

"I'm just really proud of the guys," British Bobsleigh's performance director Gary Anderson told BBC Sport.

"It's all about getting it right in Sochi but our trajectory looks good."

© Sportsbeat 2013