Kaysha Love and Bree Walker both took home the gold medal in a women’s World Cup monobob race in Lillehammer, Norway. They finished with an impressive time of 1:49.14 after two runs. Laura Nolte from Germany secured third place with a time of 1:49.21.
Love has had an outstanding season, winning seven monobob medals in just 15 World Cup races. This includes three gold, three silver, and one bronze. She has also earned medals in her last four races, making her the one to watch on the circuit.
Current World Cup leader Lisa Buckwitz from Germany placed fifth. She holds a solid 66-point lead over both Walker and Nolte in the season standings. If Buckwitz finishes eighth or better in the last race on February 15, she will clinch her second consecutive overall title.
Toronto’s Cynthia Appiah was the top Canadian competitor, finishing in sixth place.
In the two-man race that followed, Francesco Friedrich from Germany continued his winning streak. He partnered with Alexander Schuller to claim first place, bringing him closer to his seventh overall two-man title. Johannes Lochner and Georg Fleischhauer, also from Germany, came in second, while British duo Brad Hall and Taylor Lawrence finished third.
Canadian team Pat Norton and Mike Evelyn O’Higgins placed 17th, marking the best result for Canada in that event.
The race for the World Cup points title now seems to be between Friedrich and Lochner. Friedrich holds a 30-point lead as they head into the finale in Lillehammer. He needs at least a third-place finish to secure the title. For Lochner to take the crown, he would need to win, while Friedrich finishes fourth at best, which is a tall order given Friedrich’s strong track record of medals.
In the mixed skeleton event, British team Amelia Coleman and Marcus Wyatt claimed victory, with Austria’s Janine Flock and Samuel Maier taking second place. The USA team, Mystique Ro and Austin Florian, finished third.
Upcoming Events:
- Bobsleigh: Two-woman and four-man races on Sunday in Lillehammer.
- Skeleton: World championships for men and women on March 6-7 in Lake Placid, New York.
- Luge: World Cup men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and men’s singles on February 15 in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
