American bobsled star Elana Meyers Taylor wins her first Olympic gold medal

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Elana Meyers Taylor was the most successful women’s bobsledder on Team USA, except she never won an Olympic gold medal.

It ended on Monday when Meyers Taylor took home the top prize, winning gold in the women’s monobob at the Cortina Sliding Centre.

In winning her sixth Olympic medal, she tied speed skater Bonnie Blair as the most decorated American in Winter Olympic history.

Germany’s Laura Nolte, who led before the fourth and final round, finished four hundredths of a second behind the combined times and won silver.

American gold medalist Elana Meyers Taylor and bronze medalist Kaillie Humphries pose for a photo during the monbob bobsleigh medal ceremony in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, on Monday.

(Julien Finney/Getty Images)

American Kaillie Humphries won the bronze medal.

Monobob is a women’s event that debuted at the Beijing Olympics four years ago. Only one person participates, pushing the sled at the start and piloting the course at speeds of 70 to 80 mph. There were 20 competitors in the inaugural event and Humphries won his first gold medal.

Although she initially competed for Canada, Humphries became a representative for the United States in 2019 after reports that she had been the victim of abuse and harassment by the Canadian bobsleigh federation. Two investigations found that Humphries’ allegations could not be proven, but she was released to compete for the American team.