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Park City • Altogether, the Russians, Germans and Canadians raised their arms, waved their award bouquets and shouted in celebration after the four-man World Cup bobsled race at Utah Olympic Park on Saturday night.
Steve Holcomb was nowhere to be seen.
Instead, the defending Olympic champion from Park City was huddled in the truck that would transport his famous "Night Train" sled back to its loading area, nursing a hamstring injury that kept him from joining his top rivals on the podium.
Holcomb finished a disappointing sixth, missing the podium for the second-straight time in a World Cup four-man race on his home course, after a three-race winning streak there.
Russia's Alexsandr Zubkov won to complete a weekend sweep, having taken the two-man race on Friday. Germany's Manuel Machata was second, just 0.03 seconds behind, putting him on the podium for the third-straight time to begin his rookie season on the World Cup circuit.
"It's been a tough week," Holcomb said in a statement issued by the U.S. Bobsled & Skeleton Federation, "but luckily, it's not the Olympics today."
Just as he had done after his seventh-place finish in the two-man race, Holcomb declined to speak with reporters in the finish area after his race. A federation spokesman said Holcomb was heading to a doctor for treatment on the injury he suffered during training earlier in the week.
His injury kept Holcomb from helping his three teammates — Justin Olsen, Steve Langton and Curtis Tomasevicz — push off at the start of their second run, ruining his hopes of moving up after finishing the first run in second place, just 0.05 seconds back.
In the end, Holcomb was 0.3 seconds behind Zubkov.
"Today shows the caliber of athletes I have pushing with me," Holcomb said in the statement. "I was just running along beside the sled without applying any force, and the three guys on my team were able to keep me in the mix."
"I was shocked to come across the line and see fifth," he added. "I knew we would be behind at the start, but I thought I had a great run."
The Americans actually lost ground on their second run, managing just the eighth-fastest time after the seventh-fastest start.
"We have some work to do for next week," Tomasevicz said.
The Americans are headed next to Lake Placid, N.Y., but could have a rough travel day Sunday with stormy winter weather in the Midwest affecting flights nationwide. That won't make it any easier for Holcomb to get treatment on what his agent said is a significant — but not season-threatening — injury.
"It's not a tear," Brant Feldman said.
Still, it won't be easy for Holcomb to continue competing every week on the World Cup circuit.
In a worst-case scenario, he could simply sit in the sled while his teammates push off at the start — something Feldman said legendary driver Andre Lange of Germany did early last season.
That way, Holcomb could at least earn some World Cup points with his finishes, even if he's not reaching the podium.
"I can take some [sixth-]place results over sitting out with an injury," Holcomb said in the statement. "I'd rather be safe than sorry."
World Cup bobsled
Four-man bobsled results
at Utah Olympic Park:
Gold • Alexsandr Zubkov, Philipp Egorov, Dmitry Truenkov and Nikolay Hrenkov,Russia; 1:34.62
Silver • Manuel Machata,Andreas Bredau, MichailMakarow and Christian Poser, Germany; 1:34.65
Bronze • Lyndon Rush, Chris LeBihan, Cody Sorensen and Neville Wright, Canada; 1:34.72