CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — In men’s bobsled, Germany wins almost everything. In women’s bobsled, things are considerably different.

Make no mistake, Germany wins plenty on the women’s side. But the U.S. women have more than held their own, coming to this Olympics with the reigning world monobob champion in Kaysha Love, a five-time Olympic medalist in Elana Meyers Taylor and a three-time Olympic gold medalist in Kaillie Humphries Armbruster.

And when the first bobsled competition of these Milan Cortina Games starts on Sunday — the women’s monobob, one woman in a sled with no brakeman needed — it could be one of the more wide-open races of these Olympics.

“I know we’re ready to get started,” Love said.

Consider: Through four training runs, seven sliders from four countries have had at least one top-three finish. On the World Cup circuit this season, eight drivers from six countries have at least one monobob medal.

“You see different countries on the podium almost every week in monobob,” said Australian pilot Bree Walker, a three-time monobob winner and five-time monobob medalist on the World Cup circuit this season. “And that makes it exciting.”

In theory, the sleds are identical in monobob. It comes down to the start and the drive, yet somehow the Germans and the Americans are battling for top honors. When counting both monobob and two-woman events, those two countries combined for 11 of 14 possible women’s golds on the World Cup circuit this winter — seven for Germany, four for the U.S. — and took 31 out of a possible 42 medals overall.

Laura Nolte of Germany was the World Cup champion this season in both monobob and two-woman, making her the Olympic favorite.

“It gives me a very good feeling,” Nolte said. “It gives me a lot of confidence as I know I can win medals in both disciplines — that’s also the goal for these Games now. But, of course, on Day X everything has to be on point. I’m prepared.”

___

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics