Luger Cheyenne Rosenthal, together with Jessica Degenhardt, won the second German World Cup victory in the doubles this season on her home track in Winterberg. Dajana Eitberger and Saskia Schirmer slipped off the podium.
Local hero Cheyenne Rosenthal and Jessica Degenhardt (Altenberg) achieved their second victory of the season at the home World Cup in Winterberg on Saturday (January 6th, 2024). The young duo was already ahead of the Italians Andrea Voetter/Marion Oberhofer after the first run and was able to maintain their narrow lead in the final run despite a driving error with a total time of 1:27.131 minutes.
“The way it shook us up a bit, I didn’t believe in it anymore“, said Degenhardt afterwards. Close behind, just 0.024 seconds behind, Voetter and Oberhofer came second, Selina Egle and Lara Kipp from Austria completed the podium (+0.044).
Eitberger “not dissatisfied” despite fourth place
The former individual rider and Olympic silver medalist from Pyeongchang, Dajana Eitberger (Ilmenau), slipped off the podium in the second run together with Saskia Schirmer (Berchtesgarden) and came fourth (+0.105). “We are not dissatisfied” said the 32-year-old, who switched to the double seater at the start of the season. “You have to assume that the established ones are simply at the forefront.“
The third German doubles team with the young Thuringians Elisa-Marie Stoch (Suhl) and Pauline Patz (Schmalkalden) had to be content with last place and was almost three seconds behind the winners after two runs.
Home advantage used: Degenhardt/Rosenthal break track record
On the home track of Rosenthal from Sauerland, the current double world champions laid the foundation for their success in the first round with a new track record (43.510 seconds). The duo wasn’t quite as fast in the second run, but since Voetter and Oberhofer couldn’t match their time from the first run, victory was no longer in danger.
Since last winter, women have also been racing for World Cup points in doubles. The duo Degenhardt/Rosenthal had already triumphed in Whistler, Canada before Christmas and also secured the German championship title in Altenberg. The other two World Cup races went to the Austrians Egle and Kipp.