Canadian Duo Jump Back Into Top-10 At Viessmann Luge World Cup
-Calgary's Madison Dupuis leads Canadian women with
The Canadian duo, who had been struggling to regain their momentum in World Cup competition, finished off the day in 10th place, posting a two-run combined time of one minute 31.498 seconds.
"It was nice to be competitive again," said Pothier, of Airdrie, Alta., who along with partner Grant Albrecht, Red Deer, Alta., are currently ranked eighth in overall World Cup standings. "It was definitely a good feeling coming down, and even though we made a mistake during our second run which knocked us down a few spots in the standings, it is a relief to know we are back competing with the top teams."
Italy's Christian Oberstolz and Patric Gruber took the top spot to claim the gold medal in Saturday's race. The current overall World Cup leaders posted a two-run combined time of 1:30.376. Teammates Gerhard Plankensteiner and Oswald Haselrieder finished the day in second place to take home the silver medal with a time of 1:30.540. Mark Grimmette and Brian Martin from the United States rounded out third to grab the bronze medal at 1:30.576.
Calgary's Madison Dupuis was the fastest Canadian in women's singles competition. The 17-year-old slid into 20th spot after posting a combined time of 1:33.235.
"I had two clean runs so I was expecting to sit a little bit higher in the standings," said Dupuis, who posted her season best of 11th place on her home track in Calgary this past December. "It is great experience competing against the German women. I just have to keep persevering and trying to inch my way closer to the top as the season progresses."
Germany's Sylke Otto slid to her second consecutive World Cup victory this season, posting a two-run combined time of 1:31.633. Teammate Silke Kraushaar, who is currently ranked second in overall World Cup standings, slid into second place to take the silver medal with a time of 1:31.836. Ashley Hayden of the United States finished in third to take the bronze medal, pushing current World Cup leader Barbara Niedernhuber off the podium. Hayden posted a combined time of 1:31.878.
Calgary's Meaghan Simister was the only other Canadian slider in the women's race. The 18-year-old finished off the day in 23rd place after posting a time of 1:33.695.
The Viessmann Luge World Cup continues on Sunday in Winterberg with the men's singles racing.
The Canadian Luge Associaton is the governing body for luge racing in Canada. In partnership with CODA, the Canadian Luge Association operates the Olympic Luge Training Centre at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, which develops our nation's high-performance luge athletes and promotes the sport across the country. For more information on the Canadian Luge Association, please visit us at www.luge.ca on the Internet.
COMPLETE TEAM RESULTS: www.fil-luge.org
Top-Five Men's Double's Results (14 Sleds):
1. Oberstolz/Gruber, ITA, 1:30.376; 2. Plankensteiner/Haselrieder, ITA, 1:30.540; 3. Grimmette/Martin, USA, 1:30:576; 4. Florschütz/Wustlich, GER, 1:30.660; 5. Leitner/Resch, GER, 1:30.708.
Canadian Results (13 sleds):
10. Grant Albrecht, Red Deer, Alta., and Eric Pothier, Airdrie, Alta., 1:31.498.
Top-Five Women's Results (23 Sleds):
1. Sylke Otto, GER, 1:31.633; 2. Silke Kraushaar, GER, 1:31.836; 3. Ashley Hayden, USA, 1:31.878; 4. Barbara Niedernhuber, GER, 1:31.939; 5. Anastasia Oberstolz-Antonova, ITA, 1:32.105.
Canadian Results (23 sleds):
20. Madison Dupuis, Calgary, 1:33.235; 23. Meaghan Simister, Calgary, 1:33.695.