“I can’t tell you how happy I am for Steve and his team,” men’s bobsled head coach Brian Shimer said. “It’s fantastic to see Steve win the four-man event for the second week in a row.”

Holcomb’s team of Brock Kreitzburg (Akron, Ohio), Steve Mesler (Calgary, Alberta) and Pavle Jovanovic (Tom’s River, N.J.) assisted in the two fastest pushes of the competition with 5.04 and 5.02 start times.

“It’s a long season, and some of these guys took the first half of the year off so they could peak at the right time,” Shimer said.  “The team is pushing great, Steve is driving just as well, and we’re building confidence each week with each race.”

In the first heat, Holcomb carried the momentum in his Bo-Dyn sled from the start through the finish with a time of 51.67, putting him in first position and 0.12 ahead of the Russian team driven by Evgeni Popov, who sat in second after the first run with a time of 51.79.

Extending his lead in the second run, Holcomb finished with a 51.42 for a combined time of 1:43.09, claiming the gold. 

“Steve and his team really stepped it up this year,” U.S. Bobsled and Skeleton Executive Director Terry Kent said.  “They’ve got great support from the Bo-Dyn Bobsled Project, tremendous coaching from Brian Shimer, and Steve has one of the best push teams in the world.”

Taking the silver was Popov, who drove a second run of 51.50 for total time of 1:43.29, two-tenths of a second behind Holcomb, but almost half a second ahead of the bronze medal.  Finishing in third was the German sled driven by Karl Angerer, who won his first-ever World Cup medal in yesterday’s two-man competition, with a combined time of 1:43.83.

Kohn’s team of Curt Tomasevicz (Lincoln, Nebraska), Tim O’Mara (Salt Lake City, Utah) and TJ Burns (Blue Bell, Pa.) had start times of 5.14 and 5.19.  The team finished the first run in tenth place with a time of 52.28.  In the second run, Kohn drove the sixth best time of the heat with a 51.86, moving him up one position into ninth place.

After today’s race, Holcomb is ranked second in overall four-man World Cup standings with 380 points.  First in overall standings is today’s silver medallist, Popov, with 450 points.  Kohn is currently ranked eleventh in overall four-man standings.

Holcomb has extended his overall lead in Combined World Cup standings with 820 points.  Kohn is ranked fifteenth with 275 points.

“I’m really proud of these guys,” Shimer said.  “I’m looking forward to the World Championships.  It’s time to put our best foot forward.”

The team will be traveling to St. Moritz, Switzerland for the next stop on the tour to compete in the World Championships.  The two-man event will be held from Jan. 27-28, and the four-man race will take place from Feb. 3-4.

For complete results of today’s race, visit www.bobsleigh.com, the Web site of the Fédération International de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganning (FIBT).

Results:

1. Holcomb, Jovanovic, Mesler and Kreitzburg (USA1) 1:43.09 (51.67, 51.42); 2. Popov, Orechnikov, Trunenkov and Stepushkin (RUS1) 1:43.29 (51.79, 51.50); 3. Angerer, Udvari, Kuehne and Mielke (GER2) 1:43.83 (52.09, 51.74); 4. Minins, Dreiskens, Podnieks and Rozitis (LAT1) 1:43.84 (52.05, 51.79); 5. Lueders, Kotyk, Bissett and Brown (CAN1) 1:43.90 (52.07, 51.83); 6. Rueegg, Herzog, Lamparter and Bloechliger (SUI1) 1:44.08 (52.12, 51.96);…9. Kohn, Tomasevicz, Burns and O’Mara (USA2) 1:44.14 (52.28, 51.86);