Winter Olympics 2010: twin disappointment sees Team GB medal target slide out of reach

By Simon Hart and Jacquelin Magnay in Vancouver Published: 8:49PM GMT twenty-five February 2010

Down and out: Nicola Minichiello and Gillian Cooke see hopes pile-up Photo: GETTY IMAGES

In the space of a couple of mins yesterday, dual of Britain"s greatest award hopes were sent crashing out of the Games. One of them literally.

While David Murdoch"s group were being put to the long knife by Sweden in their curling tie-breaker in Vancouver, Nicola Minichiello and Gillian Cooke found themselves upside down in their bobsleigh on the Whistler ice track, their Olympic dreams over.

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Both Murdoch and Minichiello had arrived in Canada as universe champions. Their failures all but finished Team GB"s chances of assembly the three-medal aim set by UK Sport, the supervision group that has outlayed �6.5 million of Lottery income on scheming Britain"s athletes for Vancouver.

Barring a award for short-track speed skater Jon Eley, the last superfluous GB contestant able of creation the podium, the usually discernible prerogative for the investment will be Amy Williams" structure of the body bullion medal. That would be a downsizing from the bullion and bronze won at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games though an alleviation on the unique china won in Turin 4 years ago.

As Canada enjoyed what one title marked down "The majority appropriate day yet" after the nation combined a gold, dual silvers and a bronze to the burgeoning award collection, it was but disbelief the misfortune day nonetheless for Team GB.

Murdoch described his better as "heart-breaking" whilst Minichiello certified she was "devastated" by her crash.

For the curlers, their 7-6 better was the perfection of a array of below-par performances that left them with a jot down of five wins and 4 defeats at the finish of the round-robin section. Not the form of universe champions.

Their woes one after another from the opening in yesterday"s eliminator when a bad mill by lead curler Euan Byers authorised Sweden to browbeat the opening finish and take a 2-0 lead.

Further mistakes left Britain chasing the compare and, notwithstanding fighting behind to force an additional end, Sweden done the majority of their last-stone value to close out the game.

Murdoch said: "It"s heartbreaking. It"s the misfortune thing probable as far as the group is concerned.

"We only put ourselves in a on all sides where each diversion mattered so most at the finish of the week. We had the backs to the wall and we only didn"t finish off matches the approach we"re used to doing.

"We did all we presumably could. For the last dual years we have lerned 6 days a week and practised as most as we presumably could and came in to this week as universe champions. But infrequently weeks only don"t go for you."

The chances of Minichiello and Cooke creation it to the lectern were already seeking remote after they trailed in 10th place altogether after their initial dual runs, but their seductiveness in the bobsleigh foe came to a thespian finish when their sled flipped over on their third run on Thursday, boring the span inverted along the track.

A leg repairs to Cooke and repairs to the sled meant they were incompetent to take piece in the fourth and last run.

"We"re devastated," pronounced Minichiello. "It"s all we"ve been precision for and operative for.

"After yesterday we only had to go for it. We knew it was going to take all we had but we only lost it.

"We only pushed a small bit as well much. We only let it float a bit as well much. We came out of bend eleven and only pulled it and it tipped."

Unlike UK Sport, the British Olympic Association refused to set a award target, insisting the idea was to urge on Turin and for athletes to grasp personal bests.

BOA arch senior manager Andy Hunt said: "I"m positively gay by the opening of the group in removing a bullion award the initial by a womanlike particular in 58 years, that is outstanding."

Team GB competence have longed for multiform award chances but there was at slightest a little British success afar from the sporting locus as structure of the body slider Adam Pengilly was inaugurated by associate athletes to the International Olympic Committee athletes" commission. He will offer as an IOC part of for the subsequent eight years.