Skeleton-Men poised to build Britain's unlikely legacy

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb 10 : It still demands something of a double-take to read that Britain, a country without a single sliding track, is the second-most successful skeleton nation in Olympic history, and that medal haul looks set to be increased in Cortina this week.

Having bagged three golds in the women's singles through Amy Williams in 2010 and Lizzy Yarnold (2014 and 2018), this time it is the men leading the way in the high-octane, head-first sport.

Matt Weston is one of the hottest favourites of the entire Games, arriving as a double world champion having just secured a third successive World Cup title.

He won five of this season's races and the two he did not win - when he finished second - went to fellow Briton Marcus Wyatt, who finished third in the World Cup standings.

On the women's side, Tabitha Stoecker took third in the World Cup and teamed up with Wyatt to top the mixed team World Cup in a timely success ahead of the event making its Olympic debut this year.

Over the World Cup season Britons took an impressive nine golds in a haul of 16 medals, with Germany and Belgium next-best on three.

"I think the boys need to even the score a little bit," said Wyatt. I got into the sport off the success of Amy, Lizzy and Laura (Deas) and it's always been 'the girls, the girls' so there's a little part of you that thinks, 'now it's our time'.

"The progress the team and I have made over the last four years is crazy and while there is definitely some pressure, we see pressure as a privilege."

Despite the remarkable consistency of the British duo, the margins on the day can be tiny. In the final World Cup singles race in Altenberg, Germany last month, Weston and German duo Christopher Groetheer and Axel Jungk (gold and