Double bronze for McNeill

Mica McNeill ended her sliding season with back-to-back podium finishes in France at the weekend.

McNeill won a brace of bronze medals in the women’s monobob event in La Plagne as she brought the curtain down on her 2019/20 campaign in impressive fashion.

The 2018 Olympian has competed for her country in the 2-woman version of the sport since 2012 but this was the first time she had raced in the single person competition.

McNeill only had a few days’ training to get used to the new format but she adapted quickly to finish third in a 17-strong field on both Friday and Saturday.

The 26-year-old, who placed eighth in the 2-woman World Championships in Altenberg late last month, was consistent on each of her four race runs in La Plagne as she came down second and fourth fastest on Friday and third quickest on both occasions 24 hours later.

Fellow Brits Felicity Bee and Jo Ellett also featured in France, with Bee finishing eighth and 13th and Ellett twice coming down in 10th in what was their third experience of mono bob racing after previous events in Lillehammer and Konigssee before Christmas.

Australia’s Bree Walker won gold on both days, with Karlien Sleper of the Netherlands and Andreea Grecu of Romania the silver medalists.

The final race of the women's mono bob season takes place is Lake Placid in early April but McNeill is not scheduled to compete. 

The women’s mono bob will feature at a Winter Olympic Games for the first time in Beijing in 2022.