"I made far too many mistakes" - Adele Nicoll reflects on Winter Olympics bow
Adele Nicoll is ready to get more Olympic experience under her belt after a error-strewn fourth run at Milano Cortina 2026.
The Welshpool bobsledder made history yesterday as Britain's first ever woman to compete in the monobob at an Olympics.
She sat in a personal best of 11th place overnight and looked set to keep that form before a messy final run in Cortina which saw her fall back through the field and close out the competition in 18th place in a combined time of 4:01.86.
Her fourth run was her slowest by almost half a second, and Nicoll, who is making her Olympic debut in Italy, puts the performance down to a lack of experience at this level.
But with monobob now completed, she will immediately return for more, and this time with company, as Nicoll teams up with brakewoman Ashleigh Nelson for the two-woman bobsleigh later this week.
"Obviously my first thoughts are that I am extremely disappointed," said the 29-year-old. "Sitting in 11th going into that final run was a season's best position for me to be in. The three solid runs showed what I am capable of.
"This track is extremely punishing of mistakes and I made far too many of them in that fourth run which saw me go to the back of the field.
"That was never what I anticipated and it's not reflective of my abilities as a pilot. I think it just shows the lack of Olympic environment experience.
"Hopefully the runs I did put down show that I have potential to do far better in the future.
"Should I have another experience in an Olympic Games in the future, I will take this with me and I'm sure I will perform better next time."
Nelson may just be the key to the Olympic experience that Nicoll craves, with the former sprinter having switched to bobsleigh to qualify for her fourth Games with Team GB.
And according to former bobsledder and TNT Sports pundit Lamin Deen, Nelson's former athletics experience will be crucial in helping the duo soar to new winter heights in Italy.
"It's that experience Nelson has, and not just the experience in the bobsleigh but of being a top-flight athlete," he said. "She'll be passing on knowledge to Adele about what it's like to be at an Olympics.
"From a sprinter's point of view, whether it be in the training or competition, it can also bring a new dynamic to the team.
"We had a great deal of sprinters come into our team and they put a new spin on everything as well. From how we warmed up to how we tailored our sprint sessions."
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