Two German bobsleigh pilots have dominated the event for years. Now an argument seems to have broken out between the two. It’s about a pusher.
Before the start of the new winter sports season, there is a dispute between the two strongest German bobsledders. According to a report in the “Münchner Merkur”, former world champion Johannes Lochner is furious with the current world champion and Olympic champion Francesco Friedrich because he wanted to poach his rival’s pusher in the summer. “He’s got a piece of cake, he’ll get it back,” the 33-year-old Lochner told the newspaper and threatened Friedrich: “You should never make me angry.”
Between the two top German bobsleigh pilots – Friedrich is a 16-time world champion and four-time Olympic champion; Lochner won five World Championship gold medals and two silver medals at the Winter Games – there was an agreement never to poach pushers. But Friedrich made Georg Fleischhauer from Lochner’s bobsleigh an offer in the spring, as he revealed to his pilot.
Lochner is stuck with it for another two years because of “Wachrüttler”.
At the time it was still unclear whether the Upper Bavarian would continue his career. After the incident, which Friedrich has not yet commented on, Lochner decided to stick with it for two more seasons and continue until the Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. “That was a wake-up call. I’m highly motivated and faster than ever,” he said. He was able to hold onto his pusher Fleischhauer and now wants to push Friedrich from the top with anger in his stomach. “Coming second again – I’m not looking at that.”
Friedrich had often relegated his team rival to second place in recent years, including at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing in both the four-man and two-man bobsleigh and at the 2024 home World Championships in Winterberg in the four-man bobsleigh.
Return to Eiskanal in November
Before the new season, the first tests in the ice track will take place in Winterberg and Altenberg from November. The World Cup then begins in December with the first races in Altenberg. The highlight of the year is the World Cup in March in the American winter sports resort of Lake Placid.
Source: Stern
I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
