Born and raised in Cambridge, Cohen, 29, recently took Israeli citizenship and she has set her sights on qualifying for the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022.
Speaking to the JC from Germany, ahead of her next appearance in the European Cup, Cohen expressed confidence that she will be able to meet the Olympic qualification criterion, well before the 2021 deadline.
Having already competed in European Cup competitions in Winterberg, Germany and Innsbruck, Austria, Cohen is encouraged by having improved her placing in the 31-person field and now lies in 27th position.
So what makes Cohen want to hurtle headfirst down an ice track at 130km per hour? “It’s just an incredible adrenalin rush,” she says. “It’s fast and furious and I love the speed and the physical and mental challenge.”
Cohen took up the sport five years ago, shortly after her father, Manny, began bobsleighing. “To be honest, he’d just turned 50 and we thought bobsleighing was all about a midlife crisis. But then he invited me along to Norway because there was a spare sled and although I was terrified, I became hooked on the sport very quickly.”
That 60-second burst down the slopes is no longer terrifying and Cohen now feels in complete control, although there is still that unique adrenalin rush. Although she retains her full-time job as Online Communications Officer at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School, Cohen takes a highly professional approach to skeleton, and takes all her holiday time for the sport, as well as unpaid leave.
“I spend many hours doing homework by going over videos of previous performances,” she explains, “analysing ways in which I have lost speed and could gain speed. You cannot really move about on the sled but there are ways to finesse your body, with small procedures like pushing your shoulder and a slight move of your head.
“Watching videos can help you visualise these changes,” she said. “Most importantly, there is the start where you run and jump on the sled and can gain or lose a few seconds.”
Then there are hours of work in maintaining the sled, as well as walking carefully along each course with her coach before competitions to become familiar with all the twists and turns.
In terms of representing Israel, the inspiration came from AJ Edelman, aka the Hebrew Hammer from Boston. He took Israeli citizenship and became the first skeleton athlete to compete for Israel at the Winter Olympics earlier this year in South Korea, where he finished 28th.
“I was put in contact with AJ by a friend and I spoke to him about fulfilling my dream. As a Jew, it makes me very proud and excited to be representing Israel. I also want to help change perceptions of women in sport.”
To date, Cohen has been self-funded and despite the full support of Israel Bobsleigh Federation, she will need to raise money if her dream of representing Israel in Beijing is to come true.
