PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA - FEBRUARY 07: Laura Deas of Great Britain practices during Women's Skeleton training ahead of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Olympic Sliding Centre on February 7, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)
Two former riders are among Britain’s top medal hopes at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Lizzy Yarnold and Laura Deas have both swapped horses for sleds and are among the favourites heading into the skeleton at the Pyeongchang Games in South Korea.
The pair have posted strong times in training and will take their first and second runs at 11.20am tomorrow (Friday) UK time, and their third and fourth runs at the same time on Saturday morning.
Lizzy, who won gold at Sochi 2014, was a keen rider before she discovered skeleton.
She took part in the Girls4Gold talent finding scheme aged 19.
The initiative opened in 2008 with the aim of finding women who had the potential to win Olympic medals in modern pentathlon, bob skeleton, canoeing, rowing and sailing.
Lizzy, now aged 29, was hoping to be selected for the modern pentathlon scheme, but found she was a better fit for the skeleton.
Horse & Hound Newsletter
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
Meanwhile Olympic debutante Laura, who also came into the sport through the Girls4Gold talent route, has evented up to CCI2* in the past.
The 29-year-old told BBC Sport’s Nick Hope that she had “never been in a gym” before taking up the skeleton.
“It was a massive shock for my body — the focus became different because when I was a rider it was much more about how does the horse feel, how are they moving, what’s happening underneath me,” she said.
“Then all of a sudden it was all about how am I feeling, what am I doing — in a way there’s a lot of parallelsas well because that sort of sensitivity with what is happening underneath you, having to plan a route, think quickly, all of those things transfer really well.
“So in some ways I think it was quite a good crossover.”
Could the rider be aiming for a Rolex Grand Slam in a second discipline?
The sport is not for the fainthearted — athletes ride a small sled, known as a skeleton, headfirst down a frozen track at speeds of around 80mph.
Laura said fellow Brit Amy Williams’ gold medal at Vancouver 2010 is one of her biggest inspirations.
“I remember this really powerful feeling of thinking ‘wow, I’m in the same programme as this athlete who is currently leading at the Olympics — if she can do it then I know that I can as well’,” she told the BBC.
“I’ve always carried that with me and the fact that Lizzy went on to do the same thing as well really reinforced that — it’s a really exciting time.
“I definitely feel that I can go and win a medal. I know I have beaten every single person in that field so I know that if things go right and I bring my A game, I know I can be on the podium.”
For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t missHorse & Houndmagazine, on sale every Thursday
Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now
Lucy is an experienced news journalist, reporter and presenter. Since joining the Horse & Hound team in 2015, Lucy has reported from major global sporting events including the Tokyo Paralympic Games and multiple European Championships, as well as Badminton, Burghley and London, to name a few. She has covered current affairs and sports news across the full spectrum of equestrian disciplines and racing, as well as human and equine welfare, industry news and court cases.
