Francesco FRIEDRICH

PERFECTIONIST
In his first World Cup race in St. Moritz, in January 2012, he finished by himself after brakeman Jannis Baecker slipped and didn’t load into the bobsleigh at the start. This lesson has shaped him as a pilot. Every screw is checked and every error is eliminated in advance. “He works harder and more conscientiously than any other pilot,” says national team coach Rene Spies. (tekdeeps.com, 11 Feb 2021; schwarzwaelder-bote.de, 27 Jan 2013)

STATISTICS
"I need new stimuli, new challenges, and I look for them in the statistics. Basically, I've won everything that is important, and yet I'm still a long way from being full. I am fascinated by records for eternity, and I work on them with the greatest possible meticulousness." (welt.de, 5 Dec 2018)

TRAINING / EQUIPMENT
His training alternates between sprinting, strength work and jumps, optimised for maximum recovery. In 2019, added KAATSU training, which involves performing low-load resistance exercises while externally-applied compression mildly restricts blood flow to the active skeletal muscle. (nature-rocket.shop, 13 Mar 2019; katsu-deutschland.de)

German car manufacturer BMW developed a simulator for the German bobsleigh team to train on. It is a real bobsleigh chassis with original steering and 3D scans of bobsleigh tracks. “It’s crazy how close this comes to reality. If we were to implement something like this for bobsleigh racing, it would be possible to learn new tracks much faster and improve the steering in every detail.” (insidethegames.biz, 17 Nov 2020)

PARTNER
Met his future wife Magdalena while riding a guest bobsleigh in Altenberg. Jannis Baecker, his brakeman, was the best man at his wedding. (Saechsische.de, 11 Aug 2014)

SPONSORSHIP
He is humble, helping find sponsors for other bobsledders. Has supported Austrian Benjamin Maier's bobsleigh team since the 2020/21 season. It started with a 500 Euro donation to his rival that has turned into increased sponsorship. "Bobteam Friedrich" now adorns the Austrian sled. "The bobsleigh family has to stay alive. We have to be careful that it doesn't die out. If, in the end, only the Germans are left, the sport won't be around for much longer." (mdr.de, 20 Dec 2021; sueddeutsche.de, 11 Feb 2021)

© Data by Sports Data Warehouse

OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES
In the two-man at Beijing 2022, won his third gold medal, successfully defending his title from 2018 with brakeman Thorsten Margis.

Tied with Canada’s Justin Kripps and Alexander Kopacz for the gold medal in the two-man bobsleigh at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games (with brakeman Thorsten Margis). Won gold in the four-man bobsleigh, becoming the fifth German pilot to win gold in the two and four-man at the same Games (Andreas Ostler in 1952, Meinhard Nehmer in 1976, Wolfgang Hoppe in 1984, and Andre Lange in 2006).

His tie at PyeongChang 2018 with Kripps was only the second time in Olympic bobsleigh history that two teams walked away with gold medals. At the Nagano 1998 Olympic Winter Games, Pierre Lueders (CAN) and David MacEachern (CAN) tied with Italians Guenther Huber and Antonio Tartaglia for the top spot, also in the two-man.

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
The most decorated driver in the history of bobsledding's World Championships.

Thirteen-time World champion with seven golds in the two-man (2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021), four golds in the four-man (2017, 2019, 2020, 2021), and two golds in the mixed team (2011, 2015). Silvers in four-man (2016) and mixed team (2013). Has won the two-man/four-man double four times (2017, 2019, 2020, 2021).

His 13 gold medals (11 in the two- and four-man) rank first all-time, ahead of Italian Eugenio Monti (nine), and his 15 total medals equal brakeman Kevin Kuske (GER).

Has won four straight four-man world titles, including in 2017 when he and compatriot Johannes Lochner tied for the gold medal - the first such tie for gold at the World Championships. In the two-man, he has won seven consecutive titles.

In his two-man victory in 2021, finished 2.05 seconds ahead of Lochner, the largest margin of victory in two decades.

At the 2013 World Championships, became the youngest world champion - at age 22 years, 270 days - when he won the two-man with brakeman Jannis Baecker.

In March 2019 in Whistler, he set the bobsleigh speed world record of 157.06 kilometers per hour in the third run of the four-man.

Three-time Junior World champion (2011 two-man, 2012 two-man and four-man), and 2011 silver medallist (four-man).

WORLD CUP
Earned the 100th medal of his World Cup career - including one claimed in a team event in 2013 - on 8 January 2022 in Winterberg. He has won a record 66 World Cup races in his career. (44 in four-man, 22 in two-man).