Top things to know about the 2021/22 bobsleigh season 

A fast, furious and frantic bobsleigh World Cup season is about to begin, as the world's best prepare for four months of competition that ends with the ultimate prize: the chance to fight for gold at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.

Can Franceso Friedrich continue his dominance in the men's competition? Who will stand tallest in a talent-packed women's field? And who will be named the inaugural women's monobob champion at next year's Games?

We may not have all the answers now, but one thing's for sure – you won't want to take your eyes off the action this season.

Can anyone topple Francesco Friedrich in the men's competitions?

If there's one legend of the sport of bobsleigh competing today in the men's competition, it's undoubtedly Germany's Francesco Friedrich. Back in 2015, while he was still a relative up-and-comer, Friedrich's coach called him "a talent you only see once every hundred years." And oh how those words have proved to be true.

Friedrich has won a record seven World Championships in a row in the two-man event, including the 2021 title in Altenberg. He's also topped the podium in the four-man event at the past three World Championships, securing his place in history as the only man to have won 10 World Championships gold medals.

"Lochner is the best on this planet," said the IBSF commentary team at the 2021 World Champs, "but Friedrich is sliding on another planet."

READ | Francesco Friedrich becomes bobsleigh G.O.A.T. with 10th World Championship crown

As a nation, Germany's strength in depth is formidable. As if further proof were needed that they will be the country to beat going into the new World Cup season that culminates at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, a quick glance at the 2021 two-man World Championship results shows that the entire podium was made up of German pairs, with Johannes Lochner and Eric Franke in the second position and Hans-Peter Hannighofer and Christian Roeder third.

The 2020/21 bobsleigh World Cup competition followed a similar pattern, with every victory bar one – a race in Innsbruck won by Lochner and Franke – going to Friedrich and Schuller. In the four-man event, the German crew was even more dominant, winning every one of the season's four World Cup events. However, competition for the second and third spots was strong, with the Austrian crew of Benjamin Maier, Sascha Stepan, Markus Sammer and Danut Moldovan winning four silvers and Canada's Justin Kripps, Ryan Sommer, Cameron Stones and Ben Coakwell taking a silver and two bronzes.

Don't be too quick to write off other teams when it comes to the sport's showcase competition, the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. Germany won the four-man event in impressive fashion at the last Games in PyeongChang, however, the two-man competition threw up one of the surprises of the competition, as the Canadian crew of Kripps and Alexander Kopacz set the exact same time as their German counterparts to see both teams awarded gold.

Will there be more shocks and surprises at Beijing 2022?

From Kaillie Humphries to Kim Kalicki and Elana Meyers Taylor - which women are on course for gold?

If the men's competition seems a bit cut-and-dried, the women's side is far more open. USA's two-time Olympic champion Kaillie Humphries was the big winner at the 2021 World Championships, snagging gold in both the monobob – an event that makes its Olympic debut at Beijing 2022 – and the two-woman event, where she was partnered by former Summer Olympian Lolo Jones.

Could a double assault on gold be on the cards for Humphries when the Beijing 2022 bobsleigh competition takes place in February of next year?

Germany's Kim Kalicki is likely to provide stiff competition to the U.S. athletes. The 2020 World Junior Champion has won two silver medals at the last two World Championships, finishing just 0.35 seconds behind the USA pair at the 2021 edition in Altenberg where she was partnered by Ann-Christin Strack.

READ | Five things to know about Kim Kalicki

Kalicki finished second in the overall two-woman standings during the 2020/21 World Cup season, after securing six podium finishes including one victory. Her 2021 win at the World Cup in Konigssee also saw her triumph over Humphries and cement her position as one of the favourites for Olympic glory.

The overall winner of the 2020/21 two-woman bobsleigh World Cup competition was Austria's Katrin Beierl who showed strong consistency throughout the season to accumulate 1506 points and become the first-ever Austrian women to secure the title.

And don't sleep on the reigning Olympic champion, Mariama Jamanka, for the two-woman event. Another of the German contingent, Jamanka also has two World Championship victories to her name (2017, 2019), as well as being named European champion in 2017.

One other name to look out for during the upcoming season is 2016 Youth Olympic Games monobob winner and European two-woman champion Laura Nolte. The 22-year-old athlete may be at the beginning of her career, but she's already proving she has the talent to be a double threat for gold at Beijing 2022.

READ | Why Laura Nolte is one to watch at Beijing 2022

Nolte showcased her immense promise to the world at the 2021 World Champs, bringing home two bronze medals in the monobob and two-woman events. She will be looking to build upon that success during the upcoming season with the aim of stepping onto the podium at next year's Olympics.

2021/22 bobsleigh calendar

• 19-21 November 2021: Innsbruck (Austria): World Cup
• 27-28 November 2021: Innsbruck (Austria): World Cup
• 4-5 December 2021: Altenberg (Germany): World Cup
• 11-12 December 2021: Winterberg (Germany): World Cup
• 18-19 December 2021: Altenberg (Germany): World Cup
• 1-2 January 2022: Sigulda (Latvia): World Cup
• 8-9 January 2022: Winterberg (Germany): World Cup
• 15-16 January 2022: St. Moritz (Switzerland): World Cup
• 4-20 February 2022: OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES BEIJING 2022