Skeleton world champion Matt Weston remains unfazed by the potential ban on the new helmets planned for the British team at the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina.
The British Bobsleigh and Skeleton Association (BBSA) recently filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation’s (IBSF) decision to outlaw the team’s new helmets, citing non-compliance with existing regulations.
Despite the uncertainty, Weston is confident and focused on his proven performance with his current equipment, which has already helped him secure victories in five out of seven World Cup events this season.
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He told the Press Association, “It doesn’t really affect me too much. The equipment I’ve been using all year is what I can use at the Olympics, and that hasn’t gone too badly for me. I’m not concerned – I’m just excited to get racing.”
Weston emphasized that the helmet issue is a minor concern amidst bigger priorities. “This is an icing on the cake, but I still need to make the cake at the moment,” he said. Highlighting the competitive nature of skeleton racing, where outcomes are decided by hundredths of a second, he added, “For us as GB and the team we have around us, we’re constantly innovating from race week to race week. We try to push the boundaries and find those gains. This is just one part of the innovation we do, and I think we do it pretty well.”
Having finished second to teammate Marcus Wyatt in the two other World Cup races, Weston remains comfortable with the option of using the existing helmet if the appeal fails. “We’ve developed a new helmet that is a slightly different shape from what we’ve currently been using, but that is all it really is. We believe it is legal; it’s currently being debated. All of our success has been with our current helmet, so for me, it is the tiniest little thing in the background.”
He concluded confidently, “If it is legal then great, but I’m not worried – whatever we end up wearing, I think we’re in with a great shout of bringing some medals home. It’s such a small issue; it hasn’t really crossed any of our minds. It’s part and parcel of the things we have to change anyway in normal training and race periods.”
Weston reaffirmed the team’s focus on performance and innovation: “At this point, we are some of the best in the world and are just focusing on ourselves – just doing what we need to.”