Bobsleigh at the 2026 Winter Olympics – Four-man
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The four-man competition in bobsleigh at the 2026 Winter Olympics was held on 21 February (heats 1 and 2) and 22 February (heats 3 and 4), at the Cortina Sliding Centre in Cortina d'Ampezzo.[1] Germany, represented by Johannes Lochner, Thorsten Margis, Jörn Wenzel, and Georg Fleischhauer, won the event. Their teammates, driven by Francesco Friedrich, won the silver medal, and the Swiss crew, driven by Michael Vogt, won bronze.[2][3] For Vogt and his crew, these were the first Olympic medals.
| Bobsleigh four-man at the XXV Olympic Winter Games | |
|---|---|
| Venue | Cortina Sliding Centre Cortina d'Ampezzo |
| Date | 21, 22 February 2026 |
| Competitors | 109 from 18 nations |
| Teams | 27 |
| Winning time | 3:37.57 |
| Medalists | |
Israel's first-ever bobsleigh team to compete at a Winter Olympics, was disqualified after the Israeli Olympic Committee withdrew the team. One athlete had claimed to be ill, a claim supported by a medical check and signed affidavit, to allow a substitute to complete in his place. It was later revealed that the athlete had falsely claimed to be sick. As substitutions are only permitted for legitimate illness or injury under Olympic rules, the Israeli Olympic Committee barred the team from competing further.[4]
Background
The defending champions were Francesco Friedrich, Thorsten Margis, Arndt Bauer and Alexander Schüller. Friedrich and Schüller qualified for the event, but in 2026 they were joined by Matthias Sommer and Felix Straub. If they won, Friedrich would become the first person to win three gold medals in four-man bobsleigh and could become the first person to win both the two and four-man competitions in three consecutive Winter Olympics. Margis also qualified for the event, but moved to the four-man crew of Johannes Lochner – the 2022 silver medalist alongside Florian Bauer, Christopher Weber and Christian Rasp; for 2026 Lochner and Margis were joined by Georg Fleischhauer and Jörn Wenzel. The bronze medalists were Justin Kripps, Ryan Sommer, Cam Stones and Ben Coakwell. Kripps retired from competitions. Lochner won the 2025–26 Bobsleigh World Cup, having won three out of seven four-man races that season; further three were won by Friedrich. The quartet of Friedrich, Schüller, Sommer and Straub were the 2025 World champions.
Qualification
Summary
| Sleds qualified | Countries | Athletes total | Nation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 2 | 24 | |
| 2 | 5 | 40 | |
| 1 | 11 | 44 | |
| 27 | 18 | 108 |