Clifton Wrottesley
Bobsleigh & Skeleton
BIOGRAPHY
Clifton Hugh Lancelot de Verdon Wrottesley, 6th Baron Wrottesley represented Ireland in the men’s skeleton at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, finishing 4th – the best result ever achieved by an Irish athlete at the Olympic Winter Games.
After the first of his two runs he lay in bronze medal position, but a poor start to his second run cost him a medal; he missed the podium by 0.42 seconds.
Wrottesley was born at a nursing home on Hatch Street, Dublin, and spent his first two years in Abbyknockmoy, Co. Galway. His father was killed in a car accident when he was two years old, and he subsequently moved to Spain with his mother. He inherited the barony in 1977 on the death of his grandfather. He was educated at Eton College, the University of Edinburgh and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, and served two years as an officer in the Grenadier Guards before working as a stockbroker in the City of London.
He took up sliding on the Cresta Run in St Moritz in 1988 and became the most successful slider in the track’s history, winning the record number of victories across its four classic races. His father had also competed in bobsleigh for Great Britain. Wrottesley served as Chef de Mission for the Irish team at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics and later became chairman of British Skeleton. He was elected to the House of Lords as a Conservative hereditary peer in a 2022 by-election.
WINTER OLYMPICS NEWS
WINTER OLYMPICS DEBUTANT BEN LYNCH REFLECTS ON HIS HISTORIC HALFPIPE PERFORMANCE
As he said himself it was as if the stars aligned under the Friday night lights in Livigno when Ben Lynch became the first Irish skier ever to make an Olympic final (Halfpipe) taking 8th place overall; his lucky number! Overcoming the natural nerves of his first Olympic run (which Lynch landed safely), meant [...]
Highlights from Team Ireland at Milano Cortina
Relive the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games with highlights of Team Ireland’s four athletes in action. From historic milestones to determined debuts, Ben Lynch, Cormac Comerford, Anabelle Zurbay and Thomas Maloney Westgård showcased the very best of Irish winter sport on the Olympic stage. More from Milano Cortina WINTER OLYMPICS DEBUTANT BEN LYNCH REFLECTS ON [...]
Ireland’s Winter Olympians Celebrated at Homecoming Ceremony
Ireland’s four Olympians from the Milano Cortina Games have been formally welcomed home with a reception in Dublin city centre. Freestyle skier Ben Lynch, alpine skiers Cormac Comerford and Anabelle Zurbay, and cross-country skier Thomas Maloney Westgård were recognised for their performances and their contribution to Team Ireland’s Winter Olympic campaign at the Department of [...]
BEN LYNCH IS NAMED AS TEAM IRELAND FLAGBEARER
The Olympic Federation of Ireland is delighted to announce that Ben Lynch, Irish freestyle skier, will serve as Team Ireland’s flagbearer at the Closing Ceremony of the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Verona tonight. Lynch capped off a standout Games for Ireland with a historic performance that saw him become the first Irish [...]
MALONEY WESTGÅRD SHOWS GRIT IN GRUELLING 50KM FINALE
Day Fifteen – Team Ireland at Milano Cortina ‘26 Thomas Maloney Westgård rounded out Team Ireland’s performance at the Winter Olympic Games in Milano Cortina 2026, finishing 23rd in a brutally competitive race in Predazzo, competing in the Cross-Country Men’s 50km Mass Classic. Norway dominated what is one of the most prestigious events in Cross-Country [...]
BEN LYNCH EIGHTH IN OLYMPIC FINAL
Day Fourteen Finals – Team Ireland at Milano Cortina ‘26 History maker Ben Lynch has finished a brilliant eighth place in the Finals of the Men’s Freestyle Skiing Halfpipe at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Livigno tonight, posting an impressive score of 75.00 in the final run of the event. Lynch’s result marks [...]