Canadian rugby captain, hurdlers look to try their hand at bobsleigh

CALGARY — Canadian rugby sevens captain Jen Kish and hurdlers Phylicia George and Nikkita Holder are trying their hand at bobsled.

Kish, who tweeted a photo of herself driving in a car wearing a crash helmet, led Canada to rugby bronze in Rio this summer.

“Calgary Bound. I’m ready #BobsleighTryOuts,” she wrote. 

To which, Olympic champion pilot Kaillie Humphries replied via Twitter: “Lmao! most prepared rook I have ever seen.”

Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton is no stranger to recruiting top talent from other sports. Last year it was Olympic hurdles medallist Priscilla Lopes-Schliep.

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But a Bobsleigh Canada spokesman cautioned that would-be brakemen face several challenging hurdles including meeting a push standard for World Cup competition.

Bobsleigh Canada also has existing brakemen in veteran Melissa Lotholz and Cynthia Appiah, who has performed well on the developmental circuit. More may be needed with pilots Alysia Rissling and Christine de Bruin looking to break into the World Cup scene.

Kish said she had been invited to try out.

“I fear that this may be an epic fail but I won’t let fear discourage me from trying,” she said via social media.

Kish said exploring another sport dies not mean she is quitting rugby sevens and is targeting the Dubai Sevens in early December.

The Canadian Press