Canadian bobsleigh team shows its medal(s) at World Cup races in Whistler
Bianca Ribi has spent the past few years honing her bobsleigh driving skills so that she could one day compete on the world stage.
All that hard work paid off over the weekend in Whistler, B.C.
Ribi was competing in her first World Cup monobob race and she beat them all.
Winning the gold medal was a huge thrill for the Calgarian and she says doing it in front of friends and family, who had flown in from Calgary, made it even better.
"It was quite a surreal feeling to even be in the race," said the 26-year-old.
"I had no expectations of winning. I was just hoping to be able to lay down a couple of solid runs and do my country and my family proud. Coming out with the gold was totally unexpected and honestly more than I could have ever dreamed of."
MIXING IT UP WITH THE WORLD'S BEST
Ribi's two-run combined time was 1:50.89 and that was enough to beat the rest of the field.
Ribi is part of the new generation of Canadian women's bobsleigh pilots and she says being able to mix it up with the best in the world will do wonders for her confidence.
"Going forward for the rest of the season but even a great kick-start to my career to believe that I've put in the time and the work and I deserve to be where I'm at today and just keep building every week to get better. I'm still young and I've got a lot to learn but I'm very excited," said Ribi.
MORE MEDALS FOR CANADA
What made the weekend even more special is Ribi shared the podium with another Canadian – Toronto's Cynthia Appiah won silver.
As for the men, it was also a big weekend for Calgary's Taylor Austin and his four-man crew of Shaquille Murray-Lawrence, Cyrus Gray and Davidson de Souza.
The Canadians shocked the world as they slid to a bronze medal.
It was the team’s first career bobsleigh World Cup medal.
The Canadian sled rocketed down the Whistler track to a two-run time of 1:42.37.
Austin says it was a huge thrill to medal.
"To be honest, I'm still processing," said the 32-year-old.
"Obviously, last year we won a lot of races on the development circuit, so I kind of got accustomed to being on the podium. For me to be up there, it really didn't faze me too much. But since we've won, it’s kind of really hit me that this is a massive, massive feat."
The podium performance secured Austin a full-time spot on the national bobsleigh team.
The Canadian team is in Park City, Utah, this weekend for more World Cup racing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
MPs agree Canadian gov't should improve new disability benefit
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
King Charles too busy to see son Prince Harry during U.K. trip
Prince Harry will not be seeing his father King Charles during his current visit to Britain as the monarch will be too busy, Harry's spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
Security guard shot, seriously injured outside of Drake's Toronto mansion
A security guard working at Drake’s Bridle Path mansion in Toronto was seriously injured in a shooting outside the residence early Tuesday morning, police said.
Katy Perry's mom was fooled by AI images of the singer at the Met Gala
Katy Perry did not attend the Met Gala on Monday, but some of the singer’s fans – and even her mom – thought she did.