Welcome to the International
Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation

In skeleton, there are separate racing disciplines for men and women. In World Cup competitions two heats are held over one day.  At the FIBT World Championships (held annually except in the Olympic year), four heats are held over two days. The skeleton competition at the 2010 Olympic Winter games in Vancouver, Canada skeleton events will be four-heat competitions for the first time.

The athlete with the lowest combined time in all heats is the winner. There are also America Cup and Europe Cup race series, the development level circuits for the newer sliders.  These races allow the athletes to gain experience and earn the qualifications needed to compete at the World Cup and World Championships levels. A new FIBT circuit, The Intercontinental Cup, is starting with the 2007-2008 season. In addition to the senior World Championships, athletes under the age of 23 can compete in the Junior World Championships.

Start Times

Start time -- the time it takes the sled to travel the first 50 metres down the track -- is the most critical part of the race. Without a competitive start -- at least within a tenth of a second of the fastest -- a medal finish is next to impossible.

Top skeleton sliders are looking for maximum power and acceleration as they push their sled from a standing start, with the first 50-metres typically covered in about five seconds while reaching speeds of over 40 km/h.

Driving

Once the athlete has loaded at the start, they must then steer the sled through twisting, high-speed turns and straight-aways where top speeds can reach over 135 km/h. Steering is done by shoulder and leg "manipulations" of the sled, which in turn cause the runner contact to change the sled direction. Steer too hard and the sled will skid, losing valuable time. Steer too little and the sled is at the mercy of the track, causing slow times at best, and a crash at worst.

Skeleton sliders often talk of the "feel" they need to have to race well and the sense they develop of when to let the sled run and when to steer. Just as downhill skiers try different lines to find the quickest way down a slope, so too do skeleton drivers study every twist and turn on a track to figure out the fastest way to the finish.

Starting Order

Since the ice becomes rougher as the competition progresses, it is an advantage to be among the first to go down the track. To determine which sliders get the best start positions, a seeding system is in place to reward the top sliders based on their previous results. Starting in 2007-2008 the has started a World Ranking system. The rankings will be used to determine start order for all competitions and they also determine nation quotas, and the starting order for the Olympic Winter Games and the World Championships.

At the first World Cup competition of each season, the World Ranking from the previous season is applied.  A draw is conducted for the top 10 ranked athletes. The rest of the field starts based on the World Ranking order.

Ranking

In World Cup competition, medals are awarded to the top three rankings, and recognition awards for placing fourth through sixth. In addition, points are awarded to the top-30 finishers in each World Cup race, which leads to the awarding of World Cup Titles in each of the disciplines; won by those accumulating the most points over the full season.