Jamaica’s Christania Williams teamed up with Austria’s Katrin Beierl to finish eighth in the two-woman bobsleigh at the IBSF World Cup in Innsbruck on Sunday.

Williams, a 4x100m relay silver medalist at the Rio 2016 Olympics, made an impressive debut as a brakewoman, helping the duo achieve the fourth and fifth fastest start times of the event. They completed their runs with a combined time of 1:45.11.

For Beierl, a local hero and the 2021 overall World Cup winner, this marked a significant outing with her new push athlete Williams, whose transition from track to ice demonstrated her versatility and potential in the sport.

The event was dominated by Olympic champions Laura Nolte and Deborah Levi of Germany, who clinched victory with a new track record of 52.04 seconds in their second run on their way to a final time of 1:44.09. This was Nolte’s third win of the season and solidified her position at the top of the overall standings.

Kim Kalicki and Lonie Fiebig, also of Germany, finished second, 0.15 seconds behind the leaders at 1:44.24, while reigning World Champion Lisa Buckwitz, partnered with Neele Schuten, secured third, 0.35 seconds back at 1:44.44.

American veteran Elana Meyers Taylor, making her 100th World Cup start as a pilot, narrowly missed a podium finish, placing fourth with push athlete Jasmine Jones. The Swiss team of Melanie Hasler and Nadja Pasternack, along with the USA’s Kaysha Love and Emily Renna, tied for fifth.

The Innsbruck World Cup also saw notable performances from Linda Weiszewski of Poland and Klaudia Adamek, who shared eighth place with Beierl and Williams, marking their best career result.

With three races left in the season, Laura Nolte leads the overall IBSF World Cup standings with 1,095 points, followed by Kalicki (1,045) and Buckwitz (1,027).

For Williams, her strong start on the ice signals a promising future in bobsleigh, as she continues to build on her track and field success while representing Jamaica on the international stage.