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The fourth stage of the artificial tobogganing World Cup was held at Lake Placid during the weekend. On the gut at the foot of Mount van Hoevenberg two competitions were staged, one with a traditional format and a sprint, which especially in the men's area have reopened the race to the crystal ball.
Sunday 16 December 2018 9 minutes reading time
The last weekend of North American races immediately started with a great twist. The Austrian Wolfgang Kindl, leader of the general classification and winner of the last three races, was disqualified due to the irregular weight of his sled. The world champion who had completed the first round of the traditional race of Lake Placid in third position, was thus ousted from the standings losing the right to participate in the next sprint test which, by regulation, qualifies the first 15 of the competition that takes place on the distance of the two heats.
A very hard blow for the thirty year old from Tyrol who with the double zero of this event has also had to give up the leadership in the World Cup standings. Those who took advantage of Kindl's joke were the Russian Roman Repilov, the undisputed ruler of the American weekend, and the German veteran Johannes Ludwig who, with a conduct of competition based mainly on limiting damage, moved to the general classification.
Repilov in the two days of Lake Placid has highlighted all his enormous talent destroying the competition with a second manche masterpiece in the traditional format and then completing the 'work in the sprint race, won despite a small smear committed at the end. The winner of the 2016-2017 World Cup preceded Saturday's Ludwig and the Austrian Reinhard Egger (on the second podium of the season), while in the sprint he mocked his compatriot Pavlichenko by just 34 thousandths and 113 thousandths again Johannes Ludwig .
Thanks to the two successes of Repilov, to the forced stop of Kindl and the two colorless tests of Felix Loch (only 5 ° and 8 ° to Lake Placid ed) still seemed little at ease with the materials prepared by Georg Hackl, the fight against the ball crystal of the single male is very uncertain with 4 athletes closed in a range of 62 points, when we have already reached the middle of the season.
At Casa Italia they still do not steal the two cousins Fischnaller, especially Dominik still far from the fight for a place on the podium. The leading athlete in the blue movement had to settle for an anonymous ninth position in the traditional format and the seventh place in the sprint. Kevin has instead closed, in eleventh position both the scheduled tests. Twenty-eighth rookie Fabian Malleier who ran mainly to gain experience on the American casing.
Few emotions in the two races reserved for doubles. In both competitions the Germans Toni Eggert and Sascha Benecken dominated and they inflicted heavy gaps on everyone. The duo of Thuringia first led the Teutonic double win preceding the now adversary Wendl-Arlt of 320 thousandths, then in the sprint have trimmed the beauty of 198 thousandths to the Americans Mazdzer-Terdiman on the first podium of the career in their sixth race race together.
The podium of the traditional format was completed by the now accustomed Steu-Koller who with this result joined the seventh sprint are in second place in the overall standings with 79 lengths of separation from the new leaders Eggert-Benecken. The sprint race instead saw in third position the Canadians Walker-Snith who stole heavy points to the German Wendl-Arlt quarter. Another colorless test for the Blues Ludwig Rieder and Patrick Rastner only ninth and eleventh in this last North-American event.
Two more German victories arrive in the women's sled. Even in Lake Placid the Teutonic battleship did not have any rivals, giving Germany the sixth success in as many races. In the traditional format, a stratospheric Dajana Eitberger managed to get the better of her favorite Natalie Geisenberger. The twenty-seven-year-old from Ilmenau, who had started the season, was not at his best literally reborn on the New York State track, printing the new track record in the first descent. The Olympic silver of Pyeongchang preceded the Bavarian champion by just 30 milliseconds and 255 thousandths the other compatriot Julia Taubitz.
In the sprint race, Natalie Geisenberger came back to roar, arriving in mid-season with four wins and two second places at the club, allowing her to put a serious mortgage on winning her seventh consecutive World Cup. Behind the two times Olympic champion was the US Summer Britcher, while third came again the German Julia Taubitz athlete class 1996 that this season has always been on the podium. Continue the no time of Tatjana Huefner that in Lake Placid has collected a twelfth and a ninth place, two results definitely far from the coat of arms of a champion who has won five Crystal Balls in his career.
As for Italian colors, the best was on this occasion Sandra Robatscher tenth and eleventh, while Andrea Voetter was classified in the thirteenth and fifteenth place respectively in the traditional race and in the sprint.
After tackling three events in North America, the toboggan circus takes a short Christmas break before moving to Europe in early January when the traditional Koenigssee race weekend in Germany is scheduled.
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