The top German luger Max Langenhan is on course for the title at the home world championships in Altenberg, Saxony.
In the first run, the 24-year-old sports soldier drove the fastest, 0.023 seconds separating him from the Austrian Olympic champion David Gleirscher. In third place, Dominik Filehner (Italy) is clearly behind with 0.242 seconds.
The 14-time world champion Felix Loch (Berchtesgaden) also still has faint hopes of winning a medal. The 34-year-old finished the first round in fifth place, 0.118 seconds behind bronze.
Langenhan and Loch also benefited from mistakes made by highly regarded competitors: The Latvian Kristers Aparjods crashed in the first lap and thus achieved by far the worst time. Defending champion Jonas Müller (Austria) also had problems with the demanding track and only finished eleventh.