Israel national bobsleigh team

The Israeli Bobsled and Skeleton Team (Hebrew: נבחרת ישראל במזחלות קרח‎) is the official bobsleigh and skeleton team of Israel. The team is the competitive wing of Bobsled/Skeleton Israel (BSI, formerly Israeli Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF)), which Aaron Zeff, former National Football League player John Frank, and David Greaves founded in 2002.[1]

The team is currently represented in bobsleigh by teams piloted by Dave Nicholls, Olympian AJ Edelman, and to-be-announced female teams[2] and in skeleton by Georgina Cohen, Joel Seligstein, and Jared Firestone.

Bobsled and Skeleton are run under the same international federation, the IBSF (International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation, formerly known as FIBT). Therefore, BSI ministers both the bobsled and skeleton teams.

The team qualified for the 2018 Olympic Games, in the sport of skeleton and were represented by AJ Edelman.

Bobsled Team

The Israeli National Bobsleigh Team was incorporated in 2002[3] and have represented Israel in the FIBT World Bobsleigh Championships on three occasions.[4]

Season Bobsleigh Team Members World Championships Location
2003/2004 Koenigssee, Germany
2004/2005
  • Aaron Zeff
  • David Greaves[1]
  • John Frank
  • Moshe Horowitz
 Calgary, Canada
2011/12 Omri Geva DNQ
2018/2019 -Dave Nicholls

-AJ Edelman (regional competition only)

 Whistler, BC
2019/20 Dave Nicholls DNQ
2020/21 -Dave Nicholls

-AJ Edelman[6]

-TBA Female Team[7]

Bobsled alumni include Zeff, Frank. and Greaves as well as Moshe Horowitz.[8]

Skeleton Team

BSI added Skeleton to its program in 2009.[3]

In the 2015/16 season Israel fielded its largest team to date and held its first National Championships. All four athletes (AJ Edelman, Joel Seligstein, Larry Sidney, and Brad Chalupski) competed through the remainder of the PyeongChang Olympic cycle.

Season Athletes IBSF World Championships/Olympics Representative World Championships/Olympics Location
2010/2011 Brad Chalupski Brad Chalupski Koenigssee, Germany
2011/2012 Brad Chalupski Brad Chalupski Lake Placid, USA
2012/2013 Brad Chalupski No Representative St. Moritz, Switzerland
2013/2014 Brad Chalupski Did not qualify Sochi, Russia (Olympic Winter Games)
2014/2015 Adam (AJ) Edelman No Representative Winterberg, Germany
2015/2016 Adam (AJ) Edelman Igls, Austria
2016/2017 Adam (AJ) Edelman Koenigssee, Germany
2017/2018 Adam (AJ) Edelman Pyeongchang, Korea (Olympic Winter Games)
2018/2019 Joel Seligstein

Georgie Cohen

 Joel Seligstein

Georgie Cohen

 Whistler, BC

Israel has competed in the Skeleton World Championships in 2011, 2012, 2016, 2017 and 2019.[9] Skeleton alumni include Omri Geva and Aliyah Snyder.

On December 2, 2011, Chalupski earned Israel's first ever medal in Skeleton, finishing in fifth place at the Americas Cup race in Lake Placid, NY.[10][11] Chalupski is also the first skeleton athlete to represent Israel in the World Cup.

In the 2017/2018 season Israel won 3 sliding medals. Joel Seligstein took a 5th place medal at the North Americas cup race in Calgary, Canada, and Adam (AJ) Edelman took home 2 fifth place medals at the two North Americas Cup races in Lake Placid, NY to secure an Olympic berth.

Olympic Games

Israel qualified for the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, Korea, and was represented by national champion Adam (AJ) Edelman.

Organizational Structure

The Federation President is David Greaves, and the Secretary General is Dov 'Dubi' Shlenger.

See also

References
  1. "שוברים את הקרח. נבחרת המזחלות של ישראל" ("Breaking the ice. Israel's sled team"). Ynet Sport. Amir Bognforsm: 20/02/2004
  2. "Israeli bobsleigh team targeting spot at Beijing 2022". www.insidethegames.biz. 2020-07-06. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
  3. " Skeleton sliding to South Korea: A new form of Jewish ambassadorship". Jerusalem Post, By MATTHEW AXEL August 13, 2015
  4. "Israeli Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation". bobskelyisrael.blogspot.ca. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
  5. "Watchmen rock for Israeli bobsled team". Winnipeg Free Press, 09/25/2003
  6. "ABOUT". Bob Team Israel. Retrieved 2020-09-08.
  7. "Israeli bobsleigh team targeting spot at Beijing 2022". www.insidethegames.biz. 2020-07-06. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
  8. "אליפות העולם במזחלות" ("World Championship sleigh"). Haaretz, February 18, 2005.
  9. http://www.ibsf.org/races-results/results/rankings.html?rankname=5
  10. "The bare bones of Israeli bobsleigh and skeleton". Jerusalem Post, 02/17/2012
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