{"id":22134,"date":"2026-03-12T17:07:23","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T21:07:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/?p=22134"},"modified":"2026-03-13T11:45:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T15:45:55","slug":"from-starting-blocks-to-the-bobsled-track","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/from-starting-blocks-to-the-bobsled-track\/","title":{"rendered":"From Starting Blocks to the Bobsled Track"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Bryan Sosoo \u201918, \u201919M built his athletic career on speed. A standout sprinter at Monmouth, he won multiple Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference indoor and outdoor titles and set school records in the 60-meter dash and the 4×100 relay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That same explosive power led to an unexpected opportunity: competing in bobsled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After receiving a recruitment email from USA Bobsled and Skeleton, Sosoo attended a rookie camp in Lake Placid and quickly found his footing in the sport. Just 18 months later, he was named to Team USA\u2019s four-man sled for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina, where his team finished 12th.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sosoo\u2014a push athlete and brakeman\u2014also became Monmouth\u2019s first Winter Olympian. He spoke with us about his path from the track to the Olympic ice.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Bryan
Bryan Sosoo (back, right) pushes with his Team USA four-man sled during competition at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d\u2019Ampezzo, Italy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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You began your athletic career as a standout sprinter at Monmouth. How did that experience prepare you for bobsled?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Being at a smaller Division I school allowed me to focus on competing at the highest level while also growing academically. I learned time management, discipline, attention to detail, and curiosity. Those things helped me excel as a team captain and school record holder at Monmouth and later translated when I pivoted to bobsled and competed the highest level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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You began bobsledding just 18 months before making the Olympic team. How did that opportunity come about?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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It started with an email from USA Bobsled and Skeleton that was sent to my track agent. They were recruiting athletes for future Olympic cycles. I thought, \u201cWhy not explore it?\u201d The worst thing that happens is you spend time learning something new. The best thing is you find your footing in the sport and find success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What was the moment like when you found out you had made the Olympic team?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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We were on tour in Europe when the team gathered in Munich for the announcement. When I got a text asking me to come down to the meeting room, I honestly didn\u2019t know what to expect. When the coaches told me I had made the Olympic team, it meant the world to me. The first person I called was my wife, Megan Gambuti \u201918\u2014she\u2019s also a Monmouth alum and former track athlete\u2014because she\u2019s been part of this journey from the beginning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For people who have never experienced it, what does it actually feel like to race down a bobsled track at 90 miles per hour?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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It\u2019s something you can\u2019t fully prepare for. People compare it to a roller coaster, but it\u2019s not really like that. There\u2019s no padding and the sled isn\u2019t built for comfort\u2014you hear everything and feel every movement of the track. The best way I describe it is like pushing a refrigerator or bathtub down a hill and then jumping inside. The speed and pressure are intense, and everything is amplified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Is there a moment from the Olympic experience that will always stay with you?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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For me it was the opening ceremony in Cortina. We weren\u2019t in a big stadium\u2014the streets were lined with fans and spectators. Being there with the rest of Team USA, wearing the same uniforms and walking through the crowd, was really special.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Bryan
Members of the U.S. men\u2019s bobsled team\u2014including Bryan Sosoo (third from left)\u2014pose with head coach Chris Fogt (far right) before the Opening Ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d\u2019Ampezzo, Italy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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You\u2019re Monmouth\u2019s first Winter Olympian. What does it mean to represent the University on that stage?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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When I think about the program and all the athletes who have come through it, I feel proud to add my name to that history. Having the support of other student-athletes means a lot, and I\u2019m proud to represent Monmouth and show what\u2019s possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What\u2019s next for you?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Right now it\u2019s about getting back to normal life. I work in the People organization at Bristol Myers Squibb, so I\u2019m back in that routine and enjoying time with my wife after a long season. I\u2019ll probably take about a year to just enjoy this moment and then reassess. Competing again isn\u2019t off the table\u2014especially looking toward 2030\u2014but if I do it, I want to give it my full commitment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bryan Sosoo \u201918, ’19M made Monmouth history as the University\u2019s first Winter Olympian at the 2026 Games in Milan and Cortina.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":22148,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"image_focus":"{\"x\":53,\"y\":33}","hide_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10,6],"tags":[81],"class_list":["post-22134","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-the-back","tag-alumni-profile"],"thumbnail":"\"\"","catString":"Features, The Back","issue":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22134","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/57"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22134"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22134\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22200,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22134\/revisions\/22200"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22134"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22134"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22134"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}