She is back in Beijing after racing there as a sprinter in 2008, this time as a brakeman with driver Mica McNeill in the British women's two-person bobsleigh.

It's a sport that relies on the fastest start possible to get speed into the sled so it can slide down the ice track at 85mph.

There's been much talk of conditions in Beijing being too icy for some of the sports because of its reliance on artificial snow but Montell and Mica say the bobsleigh track and Olympic village can't be faulted.

"They've done a great job here. There's artificial snow all over the village. There's an ice sculpture as we walk to the dining hall and the track is architecturally beautiful - it's insane."

"The competition venue is stunning and for the first time ever we can warm up for our race on a heated running track - we've never had that before.

"When you're up there the -15 weather does make you think 'yeah we are in a winter sport - it's very very cold up there'!"

Unlike the Olympic accommodation, which according to the girls is very warm.

The two, like all the other athletes, have to share a room in the village.

Mica has moved a wardrobe and a rail in between the beds so it gives the illusion of separate rooms.

"Bathroom times have to be scheduled - it's something we're not used too," she laughed.

But room-sharing is the least of their worries, the women's sleigh competition doesn't start until 15 February and they won't get to practise on the track until then.

Keeping competition-sharp isn't easy.

"That's the one thing about the Olympics, the host nation gets an unlimited amount of runs and we have limited time.

"We were really lucky to come out here in October and learn the track for the first time, but they can change things.

"We've had the last two days training, which is four runs, two per day and that's four minutes on the track."

'As the driver, I can't get too hyped'

Montell and Mica will have to keep in a state of readiness as best they can until the six qualification runs start, learning and adjusting as they go.

"Team GB has made us an underground gym in a storage area. Because we're here such a long time before our race it's really important that we can still carry on training."

Now they're both over the jetlag, the key over the next fortnight will be adjusting their day and training around competing later in the evening - and coffee will play a key part in getting them pumped up for the Olympic start line.

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Mica said: "For me it's probably caffeine, but as the driver I can't get too hyped, because the minute I sit down in that seat I have to be relaxed and calm to drive the sled down.

"I have to have good balance between being pumped up and having that controlled energy.

"We work better together when are relaxed. We have a process that we build up to and that moment when the light goes green we have to focus and give it all."

If the Olympic schedule in Beijing is a challenge for the bobsleigh girls it is nothing compared to the two-year build-up to these games, which have been massively disrupted due to COVID.

"It's been a challenge," she said.

"The pandemic was closing down facilities so we had to speak to sponsors.

"We couldn't go into the Olympic year without any training facilities - so we built our own push-track and trained there.

"It's been a journey and it's been difficult but we've overcome everything and here we are."