Melton skeleton racer celebrates golden moment

Amelia Coltman celebrates winning her thrilling gold medal in South Korea
Photo: Korean Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation — Amelia Coltman celebrates winning her thrilling gold medal in South Korea Photo: Korean Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation

Melton winter sports star Amelia Coltman is celebrating the best achievement of her career, at a prestigious meet in South Korea.

The 26-year-old, a star of the skeleton discipline, where competitors slide on icy tracks at rapid speeds on a small sled, secured a career-best gold medal in round six of the IBSF Intercontinental Cup.

Amelia, a former Melton Times Sports Personality of the Year, won the event by just 0.07 seconds in what she described as ‘very close and exciting racing’.

"To all the people that support me and enable me to compete at my best, thank you,” she said, shortly after being presented with her medal at the track in Pyeongchang.

The local girl’s form had been impressive beforehand with third-place finishes in round four in Winterberg (Germany) and round five, which was also in Pyeongchang.

The competition at the top of the field was fierce, however, particular from the German competitors, including Jacqueline Lölling, a silver medalist at the 2018 Olympics, which were held on the very same track.

The final time is a combination of two timed runs, and after the first, Amelia found herself second, just 0.02 seconds behind Germany’s Corinna Leipold.

There was a delay on the second run, though, and what is the usual 40-minute break turned into two hours.

Eager to conserve her mental energy, Amelia used a deck of cards to distract herself with a game of solitaire.

And her focus was unwavering on the second run, as she clocked up the fastest start time of the day, 5.32 seconds, and then held her nerve to keep the line perfectly.

A fist pump after crossing the line reflected confidence that she had done enough, but a wait was required to see if Leipold could hold on to first place with her second run.

The German athlete got off to a fantastic start, equalling the British athlete’s scorching time and going on to complete a solid run but it was not enough.

Amelia was able to celebrate a thrilling victory before standing at the centre of the podium and proudly singing the British national anthem.

She hopes to capitalise on her recent success in the second half of the season as she ventures across europe for her next world class events.