Two, Men

Whilst Switzerland and the USA had swept the medals at the 1949 and 1950 World Championships, the return to international competition of Germany in 1951 had brought a new threat to the established crews. At the 1951 Worlds, the German pair of pilot Anderl Ostler and brakeman Lorenz Nieberl became champion at their first attempt, and emerged as new favorites for the Olympic title.

The German duo, who had originally been rivals before teaming up, set a blistering pace on the first of the four Olympic runs, and built a lead of 1¼ seconds. Although their next three runs were not as fast, they were still fastest on every run and finished nearly three seconds ahead of the second place Americans, with the veteran Fritz Feierabend steering Switzerland into third. The German victory was achieved despite the use of a bob that had been manufactured in 1936.

The 1948 champion, Felix Endrich, finished fourth in Oslo, but regained the World title the following year in Garmisch. A week later, he was killed instantly at the same track when his four man bob left the circuit and struck a tree.