Key Takeaways
- The final World Cup luge race before the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 was held in Oberhof, Germany, with USA Luge’s Summer Britcher and Jonny Gustafson finishing as the top U.S. athletes in the women’s and men’s singles races.
- Chevonne Forgan and Sophia Kirkby, the only U.S. women’s doubles sled to head to Cortina, placed fifth in the women’s doubles event, while Zack DiGregorio and Sean Hollander were the leading men’s doubles team.
- The U.S. team struggled with the warm weather conditions in Oberhof, which has historically proven to be a challenge for the team.
- The World Cup standings saw Germany’s Selina Egle and Lara Kipp leading the women’s doubles, while Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt led the men’s doubles.
- The U.S. team will now prepare for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, with the next World Cup race scheduled for February 28 in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
Introduction to the Oberhof World Cup
The final World Cup luge race before the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 was held in Oberhof, Germany, with the U.S. team competing in various events. The race saw the U.S. team face challenges with the warm weather conditions, which have historically proven to be a difficulty for the team. Despite this, the team showed promising results, with Summer Britcher and Jonny Gustafson finishing as the top U.S. athletes in the women’s and men’s singles races.
Women’s Doubles Event
In the women’s doubles event, Chevonne Forgan and Sophia Kirkby, the only U.S. women’s doubles sled to head to Cortina, placed fifth with a time of 1 minute, 24.677 seconds. The duo has consistently placed in the top five in every race this season and earned the bronze at the Lake Placid World Cup. Maya Chan and Sophia Gordon were seventh with a time of 1:24.805, with Chan and Gordon consistently ranking in the top 10 all season. The race was won by Austria’s Selina Egle and Lara Kipp, with a time of 1:24.086, followed by Germany’s Elisa-Marie Storch and Pauline Patz in second, and Italy’s Andrea Voetter and Marion Oberhofer in third.
Men’s Doubles Event
In the men’s doubles event, Zack DiGregorio and Sean Hollander were the leading U.S. team, finishing eighth with a time of 1:23.082. Marcus Mueller and Ansel Haugsjaa were 11th in 1:23.345. The race was won by Germany’s Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt, with a time of 1:22.575, followed by Austria’s Thomas Steu and Wolfgang Kindl in second, and Juri Gatt and Riccardo Schoepf in third. In the overall World Cup standings, Wendl and Arlt are first with 566 points, followed by Gatt and Schoepf second with 454.
Women’s Singles Event
In the women’s singles event, Summer Britcher was the top U.S. finisher, placing ninth with a time of 1:23.705. This was an improvement upon last week’s 13th-place finish, with Britcher posting the third and fourth fastest start times in the two-heat competition. Ashley Farquharson was 15th in 1:24.054, while Emily Fischnaller did not compete in either of the two Oberhof races as she is preparing for Milano Cortina 2026. The race was won by Germany’s Merle Fraebel, with a time of 1:23.330, followed by Austria’s Lisa Schulte in second, and Germany’s Julia Taubitz in third.
Men’s Singles Event
In the men’s singles event, Jonny Gustafson was the top U.S. finisher, placing 15th with a time of 1:25.911. Matt Greiner was 16th in 1:25.940, with Gustafson and Greiner finishing in consecutive order for the second week in a row. The race was won by Germany’s Felix Loch, with a time of 1:24.673, followed by Austria’s Jonas Mueller in second, and Germany’s Max Langenhan in third. In the overall World Cup standings, Gustafson is 11th with 208 points, while Greiner is 24th with 120.
Mixed Singles and Doubles Events
In the mixed singles event, which features two sleds, a man and a woman, the U.S. team of Gustafson and Britcher placed eighth with a time of 1:34.948. The mixed doubles event saw the U.S. team of DiGregorio and Hollander, and Forgan and Kirkby finish sixth with a time of 1:34.692. The mixed singles and doubles events were won by Germany and Austria, respectively, with the U.S. team showing promising results in both events.
Conclusion and Outlook
The U.S. team will now prepare for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, with the next World Cup race scheduled for February 28 in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The team will decide on entering sleds in the final World Cup races of the season at a later date. All World Cup races can be seen live on the FIL YouTube page, HBO Max, and Discovery, with weekly highlight shows available on the NBC Sports YouTube channel.
