Germany's Johannes Lochner storms to a big lead midway through Olympic four-man bobsled

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — No surprise: Germany's Johannes Lochner is the leader midway through the four-man bobsled race at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

And he's well on his way to ending his career with double Olympic gold.

Lochner and his team — Thorsten Margis, Jorn Wenzel and Georg Fleischhauer — finished their first two runs of the four-heat event Saturday in 1 minute, 48.61 seconds. That was 0.43 seconds faster than the time posted by four-time Olympic champion and fellow German Francesco Friedrich in his first two runs.

“It was a really great one, the first (run). The second one we had problems, especially at the start and in the middle part of the track," Lochner said. "In the end, we are really happy with the result right now.”

Germany — which also swept the medals in two-man — holds all three medal spots at the midpoint: Adam Ammour, who had the fastest time in the second heat, is third, 0.59 seconds back.

The medal-deciding runs are Sunday — the final day of the Olympics.

For the U.S., Kris Horn — who couldn't compete in two-man at these Olympics because he didn't finish enough races in the World Cup season — finally got his Games underway and is ninth after two runs. Horn is sliding with Caleb Furnell, Hunter Powell and Carsten Vissering.

“We had such a long break," Horn said. "I was hoping I still know how to drive.”

Turns out, he does. He's exactly 1 second off the lead, but within 0.22 seconds of fifth and 0.41 seconds of the bronze medal spot.

The goal for Sunday?

“To push faster," Horn said. “We want start rank 1 and then pick off some people at the bottom.”

Frank Del Duca, an opening ceremony flagbearer for the U.S. who started 27th in the 27-sled field — meaning he got some seriously chewed-up ice to deal with in his opening run — is 12th for the Americans. Del Duca has Boone Niederhofer, Bryan Sosoo and Josh Williamson in his sled.

"The ice crew here in Italy is doing a phenomenal job. But the sled’s weight is close to 1,400 pounds and they’re experiencing four-plus Gs," Del Duca said. "We’re going 85 mph. And the runners are only as wide as your finger. So, they really dig into the ice, so much so that certain profiles of the corner can change on the entrance. If that’s where you’re supposed to steer and everyone’s steering in the same spot, you’d be surprised just how chopped the ice can get.

"But that being said, that’s the start draw we earned, and we’re going to keep fighting.”

Jamaica, always a fan favorite at the Olympics and the Milan Cortina Games are no exception, is 22nd going into Sunday. Only the top 20 sleds after three heats qualify for the final run on Sunday, meaning pilot Shane Pitter has to make up at least 0.11 seconds of time to get into the last heat.

There were three crashes in the second heat, after a relatively crash-free Olympics in all three sliding sports — skeleton, luge and bobsled.

The second heat of four-man was delayed for about 20 minutes after Austrian pilot Jakob Mandlbauer lost control of his sled and crashed around the midpoint of the track. Mandlbauer was taken off the track on a stretcher and brought by ambulance to a nearby hospital for evaluation.

There was no immediate word on the severity of his injuries. Austrian officials said he had movement in his extremities.

Also crashing: the French sled driven by Romain Heinrich, and the sled from Trinidad and Tobago piloted by Axel Brown. Because their sleds didn't cross the finish line, they won't be racing when the event resumes Sunday.

Lochner still has the sizable lead, but his perfect record in heats at Cortina is now gone. He had been 9-for-9 in competitive runs at the track since it opened last fall, finishing first in each of them — sweeping the two- and four-man events at the World Cup opener in November, then winning all four heats of the Olympic two-man race and the first heat of four-man.

But Ammour had the fastest time in the second heat, keeping somewhat within reach.

Lochner's margin of 0.39 seconds was the biggest after one run of an Olympic four-man competition since the 1952 Oslo Games. But Ammour's blazing second run means Lochner won't be the second pilot to sweep all eight heats in men's bobsled during the same Olympics.

Anderl Ostler — who pulled off that feat 74 years ago at those Oslo Olympics — will remain alone in that club. Wolfgang Hoppe nearly did it in at the 1984 Sarajevo Games, winning seven of eight heats and finishing 0.01 seconds back in the other.

Lochner can still be the seventh pilot to sweep both men's bobsled events in an Olympics, joining Ostler (1952), Italy's Eugenio Monti (1968), then-East Germany's Meinhard Nehmer (1976), Hoppe (1984), Germany's Andre Lange (2006), and Friedrich (2018 and 2022).

“Sled fast, start fast," Lochner said. "Then we’ll have something to celebrate, hopefully.”

AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Germany's Francesco Friedrich, center right, arrives at the finish during a four man bobsled run at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Team members and rescue workers carry an injured athlete after Austria's team Jakob Mandlbauer, Daniel Bertschler, Sebastian Mitterer and Daiyehan Nichols-Bardi crashed during a four man bobsled run at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

Austria's team Jakob Mandlbauer, Daniel Bertschler, Sebastian Mitterer and Daiyehan Nichols-Bardi crashes during a four man bobsled run at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

United States' Kristopher Horn, left, Caleb Furnell, Hunter Powell and Carsten Vissering slide down the track during a four man bobsled run at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

United States' Kristopher Horn, front, Caleb Furnell, Hunter Powell and Carsten Vissering start for a four man bobsled run at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Germany's Francesco Friedrich, front, Matthias Sommer, Alexander Schuller and Felix Straub start for a four man bobsled run at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Germany's Johannes Lochner, left, Thorsten Margis, Jorn Wenzel and Georg Fleischauer slide down the track during a four man bobsled run at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

HELSINGBORG, Sweden (AP) — NATO allies and defense officials expressed bewilderment Friday at U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would send 5,000 U.S. troops to Poland just weeks after ordering the same number of forces pulled out of Europe.

The apparent change of mind came after weeks of statements from Trump and his administration about reducing — not increasing — the U.S. military footprint in Europe. Trump's initial order set off a flurry of action among military commanders and left allies already doubtful about America's commitment to Europe's security to ponder what forces they might have to backfill on NATO's eastern flank with Russia and Ukraine.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration said it was reducing levels in Europe by about 5,000 troops, and U.S. officials confirmed about 4,000 service members were no longer rotating into Poland from Germany. The dispatch to Germany of U.S. personnel trained to fire long-range missiles was also halted.

But in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump said he would now send "an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland,” citing his strong ties with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, whom Trump endorsed in elections last year.

“It is confusing indeed, and not always easy to navigate,” Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told reporters Friday at a meeting she was hosting of her NATO counterparts, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Ministers from the Netherlands and Norway were sanguine about Trump’s latest move, as was Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže, who said allies knew the U.S. troop “posture was being reconsidered, and now there is no change of posture. For now.”

U.S. defense officials also expressed confusion. “We just spent the better part of two weeks reacting to the first announcement. We don’t know what this means either,” said one of two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters.

But Rubio said Washington’s allies understand that changes in the U.S. troop presence in Europe will come as the Trump administration reevaluates its force needs. “I think there’s a broad recognition that there are going to be eventually less U.S. troops in Europe than there has historically been for a variety of reasons,” he said.

The latest surprise came despite a U.S. pledge to coordinate troop deployments, including one from NATO’s top military officer, U.S. Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, on Wednesday.

Trump's initial announcement that he would withdraw troops came as he fumed over remarks by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said that the U.S. was being “humiliated” by the Iranian leadership and criticized what he called a lack of strategy in that war.

Trump told reporters that the U.S. would be cutting even more than 5,000 and also announced new tariffs on European cars. Germany is the continent’s biggest auto producer.

Rubio insisted that Trump’s decision “is not a punitive thing. It’s just something that’s ongoing.”

About 80,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Europe. The Pentagon is required to keep at least 76,000 troops and major equipment on the continent unless NATO allies are consulted and there is a determination that such a withdrawal is in U.S. interests.

The withdrawal of 5,000 troops might drop numbers below that limit.

But Trump's latest post suggests that troop numbers in Europe would not change. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski welcomed the decision to send more forces to his country, saying it ensures that “the presence of American troops in Poland will be maintained more or less at previous levels.”

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte also welcomed the move. On Thursday, before Trump took to Truth Social again, Rutte had underlined that it was important for Europe to take care of its own security. “We have a process in place. This is normal business,” he told reporters.

At NATO headquarters in Brussels, meanwhile, U.S. officials briefed the allies on the Pentagon's aims for its commitments to the NATO Force Model, which involves contingency planning for Europe’s defense in the event of serious security concerns. It was widely expected that a further reduction of U.S. forces would be coming.

Asked whether any cuts were announced, Rutte said: “I’m afraid it’s much more complicated than that.” He said the procedure “is highly classified” and declined to give details.

Rubio played down concerns about a shift in U.S. force levels in Europe, saying: "Every country has to constantly reevaluate what their needs are, what their commitments are around the world, and how to properly structure that.”

Cook reported from Brussels. Associated Press writer Emma Burrows in London contributed.

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with journalists during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, front second left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, front left, speak with each other during a group photo at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte look at each other as they deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže speaks at the doorstep of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting at Sea U in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)

Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives with his wife Jeanette at Malmo Airport, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Malmo-Sturup, Sweden, ahead of a NATO foreign ministers meeting. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, second from left, shakes hands with Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson, as he is greeted by King Carl Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Silvia of Sweden and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Maria Malmer Stenergard, right, before a dinner at Sofiero Castle in Helsingborg, Sweden, Thursday May 21 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)

Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)