Heerenveen (RWH) In June 2017, Wim Noorman was elected as new president of the Dutch National Bobsleigh & Skeleton federation (Bob en Slee Bond Nederland, BSBN). In a short interview, the founder of sled manufacturer Eurotech told about his background in the sport, his main tasks and the BSBN athletes to watch.

What is your background in bobsleigh & skeleton sport?
My background in this great sport is the constructing and building of bob sleds. I started with racing cars in 1991 and switched to bobsleigh in 2008. With Eurotech, we always worked for the team of the Netherlands. From 2010-2014 we manufactured the sleds for the Canadian team, including women’s bobsleigh Olympic Champions Kaillie Humphries/Heather Moyse. Since 2015, we build the Latvian sleds.

It's the pre-Olympic year - what are your three main tasks?
- I want to create good conditions for our athletes so that they can focus on the sport and have successful Olympics.
- I want to make bobsleigh and skeleton fully accepted, familiar and popular winter sports in the Netherlands.
- I want to build up a professional organisation for the BSBN.

Who are your athletes to watch for the coming season?
In Skeleton, we have two promising women with the experienced Joska le Conte and young Kimberley Bos, who finished third at the BMW IBSF World Cup and Olympic Test Event in PyeongChang in March. In bobsleigh, watch out for Pilot Ivo de Bruin with brakeman Bror van der Zijde. Bror won bronze at the BMW IBSF World Championships 2016 in the 4-man bob with Swiss pilot Rico Peter. ©RWH2017