Upset for Jamaica bobsled team as driving coach quits

One week before Jamaica’s history-making women are set to take the track in the bobsled competition at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games, their driving coach Sandra Kiriasis has quit the team.

According to a statement from Jamaica, Bobsleigh “Driving coach Sandra Kiriasis has elected not to continue her position with Jamaica Bobsleigh. We are deeply disappointed in her decision to leave the program. We thank her for her invaluable contribution to JBSF and contributing to the success of Jamaica’s first female bobsled Olympic appearance.”

The statement did not give a reason for the coach’s departure but insisted that it will not impact the JBSF or its athletes’ performance at the Olympic Winter Games.

However, reports from other media suggested that Kiriasis opted to leave after she was asked to change her role.

According to a report carried by the BBC, Kiriasis, who owns the sled the Jamaicans are using in competition, claims she was forced out when her role was changed and that she is legally responsible for the sled. Kiriasis wants payment for it but the Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation declined and is disputing she owns the sled.

"I've never known such disappointment in this sport, in my life," she said.