The Watford-born head of British bobsleigh has paid tribute to his team after Bruce Tasker and Joel Fearon produced this country’s best result in a two-man sled for 50 years this morning.

Lying in sixth place overnight following the first two runs at the World Championships in Igls, Austria, Tasker and Fearon climbed two places to finish fourth and only two tenths of a second outside a medal.

The outcome was Britain’s best in a two-man event since the 1966 World Championships in Cortina and the result was all the more impressive because it was Tasker’s first global event as a pilot.

Tasker and Fearon were part of John Jackson’s four-man crew that were 0.11 seconds off the podium in the four-man bobsleigh at the last Olympics in Sochi. But while performance director Gary Anderson was delighted by today’s historic result, the primary focus remains the 2018 winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea.

The former Leggatts School pupil told the Watford Observer: “[I’m] delighted with the result. Our plan is to be competitive in all three disciplines by 2018. That women’s, men’s two-man and four-man.

“To be fourth in the world with a pilot who is only two years into his development is testament to my coaches, athletes and our programme. We have a strategy and we won’t let anything detract from that. We will be the best prepared mentally, tactically, technically and physically we can be come 2018.”

The Watford FC fan added: “It’s the athletes that deserve the credit. They are the ones who day in, day out push themselves to achieve. If I can contribute positively in any way in that process then that is my job.”

While Tasker is only in his second year as a pilot and is still part of the four-man team as a brakeman, his partner’s story also catches the eye. A member of the British 4x100m relay team at the 2013 World Athletics Championships, Fearon only returned to bobsleigh in the summer after a year back in track and field.

The pair finished their event in a combined four-run time of 3.26.51, 0.2 seconds behind bronze medallists Beat Hefti and Alex Baumann from Switzerland. The top two steps on the podium went to Germany, Francesco Friedrich and Thorsten Margis taking gold ahead of countrymen Johannes Lochner and Joshua Bluhmn.

Following the completion of the two-man event, attention now turns to the four-man which gets underway on Saturday morning.