We’re used to seeing corporate Olympic partnerships, like the Official Lip Balm of the 2026 Olympics or the Official Ballpoint Pen of Team USA. Honda was recently announced as the official automotive partner of Team USA and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, and that partnership goes far beyond slapping some logos on athletes and equipment. Honda is also helping the USA Bobsled/Skeleton Team develop its equipment and techniques ahead of next year’s winter games, including wind tunnel testing at its facility in East Liberty, Ohio.
Honda is no stranger to auto racing, dabbling in everything from Formula 1 to racing a hydrogen-powered CR-V up Pikes Peak this year. While bobsleds are powered by gravity rather than engines, they still hit speeds up to 90 mph. Aerodynamics play an important role in shaving valuable fractions of a second off run times, especially because you can’t just floor it down the next straightaway to make up lost time. This is even more critical in skeleton competition. Imagine a high-speed belly flop on a sled, relying exclusively on the athlete’s body position rather than the shell of a bobsled to optimize aerodynamics and speed.
A 5-year mission
The immediate goal for the Honda and USA Bobsled/Skeleton effort is the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milano Cortina, Italy. However, the partnership will last for the next five years, continuing to develop the team through each year’s World Cup and World Championship events, then returning to the Olympics in 2030 at the French Alps. Honda is clearly in this for the long haul, and the sustained commitment should help development significantly.
While Honda may not be as experienced with bobsled racing as with cars, it will learn a lot in a short time and help Team USA excel. Honda will provide the same wind tunnel testing, analysis, and engineers it uses to optimize automotive aerodynamics to give our Olympic athletes an edge. Sleds will wear Acura badges rather than Honda, both to exemplify the best that Honda has to offer as well as to emphasize that this is a North American effort rather than one based in Japan.
Auto racing was unofficially part of the Olympics in the distant past. We’d love to see it return, and electric karting almost made it into LA 2028. Until then, it’s great to see American Honda helping in other areas where it can.
