For the first time in twelve years, the German Skeleton women stayed with a World Cup without a single medal. Mixed feelings prevail in front of the mixed team event.
The German Skeleton women experienced a debacle at the World Cup in Lake Placid and stayed without a medal for the first time in twelve years. Ex-world champion Susanne Kreher (Oberbärenburg) was the sixth of the BSD, after four runs, she was 1.36 seconds behind the new title holder Kimberley Bos from the Netherlands.
Silver won Mystique RO from the USA, bronze went to Anna Fernstädt, who had moved from the German to the Czech team after the 2018 Olympics – and now won her first individual medal at a World Cup.
In addition to Kherer, no other Germans made it into the top 10. Jaqueline Pfeifer (Olsberg) was only a disappointing 16th, one of the rank was still the result of Olympic champion Hannah Neise (Winterberg).
“From the run one the worm was inside”
“It’s a stupid end of the season, but in the end it is always a matter of learning. It was almost foreseeable, ”said Neise, who was on the podium four times in the World Cup season. “I was really looking forward to the World Cup, but from the run one the worm was in there,” said the former Olympic second Pfeifer, “I didn’t get in at all.”
Kreher had given away a better result, especially with a failed first run, “I am relieved that it was still enough for the top six,” she said. Kreher will now compete with Axel Jungk on Sunday (1:00 a.m./CET) in the mixed team event. Jungk had previously won the bronze medal and thus saved the German balance from men.
For the women, an impressive series ended in the ice gutter on Mount van Hoevenberg. There had been no German medal at the 2013 World Cup in St. Moritz, and since then six World Cup titles have been followed, four silver and two bronze medals. The highlight of this phase was at the World Cup level the completely German Podest 2019 in Whistler, when Tina Hermann in front of Pfeifer, at that time still under the name Lölling, and Sophia Griebel became world champion.