The South Bay's ranks of Winter Olympians has swelled by two.

Dan Janjigian and Yorgo Alexandrou, two San Jose residents who compete for Armenia, qualified for February's Salt Lake City Games in the two-man bobsled with strong performances at three America's Cup events Sunday and Monday in Lake Placid, N.Y.

``We really had been struggling before we came up here,'' Janjigian said. ``But we beat teams that we had never beaten before. We're in, and it's an incredible feeling.''

They finished sixth, eighth and fifth in the three races against international competition. In bobsledding, the top six teams win medals. Janjigian, the driver, has been competing since 1998 with several brakemen and had never medaled in an event.

The breakthrough couldn't have occurred at a better time. Heading into this weekend, they had 20 points for the season -- far below the 60-point minimum they needed to qualify for the games. But Janjigian and Alexandrou earned 51 points in the three races, pushing them over the top.

Contact Mark Emmons at memmons@sjmercury.com or (408) 920-5745.