Red Stripe Beer Offers to Buy Jamaican Women New Bobsled After Coach Quits

Red Stripe Beer offered to purchase a new bobsled for the Jamaican women's bobsled team after its coach, Sandra Kiriasis, quit.

According to BBC Sport's Anna Thompson, Kiriasis "threatened to take the team's sled," which she claims she owns. Thompson added that Kiriasis "wants payment for it but the Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation declined and is disputing she owns the sled."

Red Stripe, which is brewed in Jamaica, made the offer Thursday morning. ESPN.com's Darren Rovell confirmed it is legitimate.

"When Red Stripe caught wind of the news, we immediately huddled as a team and made the decision to show our support," Red Stripe senior marketing manager Andrew Anguin said in a statement provided to B/R. "We then reached out after receiving the information for the correct person at the Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation and began a dialogue on how we can help in any way possible."

Kiriasis told reporters she left the Jamaican team because the country's bobsled federation wanted her to move from driving coach to performance track analyst.

"Sandra Kiriasis has elected not to continue her position," the federation said in a statement. "We are deeply disappointed in her decision to leave the program."

The Jamaican women's team, which is making its Olympic debut in Pyeongchang, South Korea, will participate in training heats Saturday, Sunday and Monday before competition ramps up Tuesday and Wednesday.