Bobsleigh World Championships 2015: Daily Results Tracker, Medalists and More
The world's best and brightest bobsleigh and skeleton competitors descended on Winterberg, Germany, this week to kick off the annual FIBT World Championships.
Normally a yearly event, the 2015 iteration takes place two years after the previous event due to a break caused by the Winter Olympics in Sochi. As the host country, Germany comes in with high expectations. The Germans led all medal-winning countries with five in Switzerland two years ago; Germany was also the only country to take home multiple golds.
With a bevy of participants and the home crowd cheering them on, it'll be interesting to see if the Germans can continue their run of dominance. The United States, which finished second in the medal count in 2013 and earned four golds alone in 2012, will likely be the most formidable foe.
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The events are spaced out over a span of nearly two weeks, so there should be plenty of time to keep up with all of the events. Check back for a daily look at all of the results from Winterberg.
Day 8 Results
Germany's Maximilian Arndt piloted two clean runs to capture the gold medal as Oskars Melbardis' Latvia team faltered over the final rounds of the four-man bobsleigh competition at the 2015 FIBT World Championships on Sunday.
Melbardis held the lead after Saturday's pair of attempts. He was unable to match those results on the last run, however, and it left the door open. Arndt, and another German squad piloted by Nico Walther, took advantage to secure the top two spots on the podium for the country.
Here's a look at the medal results:
| Gold | Maximilian Arndt | GER | - |
| Silver | Nico Walther | GER | +0.02 |
| Bronze | Oskars Melbardis | LAT | +0.12 |
Another German group, led by Francesco Friedrich, finished fourth while Lamin Deen guided Great Britain to a solid fifth-place finish. The United States' best finishers were in ninth courtesy of the sled with pilot Steven Holcomb, the 2010 Olympic gold medalist in the event.
Ken Childs of Sliding On Ice highlighted just how close the competition was heading into the final run:
As expected, it was a thrilling conclusion to this year's World Championships. Arndt came up with the clutch run he needed to secure the victory. Inga Ortmann of Sky Sports News passed along a picture of the celebration:
That brings an end to the medal events from Winterberg, Germany. The host nation dominated throughout, winning nine medals, including three golds out of six events. Latvia finished a distant second with four medals (one gold).
The United States' only medal was a gold that Elana Meyers and Cherrelle Garrett in the two-woman competition. Meyers has been trending in the right direction in the event for the past handful of years, taking bronze at the 2010 Olympics and silver at the 2014 Games.
All told, six different countries reached the podium. None more often than Germany.
Day 7 Results
Lizzy Yarnold continued her recent dominance in women's skeleton by capturing the FIBT World Championship title on the penultimate day of the event. It marked the first medal won by a Great Britain athlete at the competition.
She edged Jacqueline Lolling of Germany and Elisabeth Vathje of Canada for the gold. Here's how the podium shaped up:
| Gold | Lizzy Yarnold | GBR | - |
| Silver | Jacqueline Lolling | GER | +0.67 |
| Bronze | Elisabeth Vathje | CAN | +0.79 |
Yarnold posted the best time of anybody in the first run and never looked back over the final three. She adds the World Championship gold to the ones she already picked up at last year's Winter Olympics and this year's European Championships.
She celebrated the accomplishment on social media:
UK Sport applauded her effort:
The silver by Lolling increased Germany's overall lead to four medals. It has seven, including a pair of golds. No other country has more than three (Latvia). Vathje's trip to the podium was the first for a Canadian athlete at the championships.
Annie O'Shea was the top American finisher in 18th place overall.
Also on the Saturday's docket were the first two attempts in the four-man competition. It's the last medal event of the Winterberg showcase with the final pair of runs tomorrow.
Here's how the top of the leaderboard looks heading into the last day:
| 1 | Oskars Melbardis | LAT | - |
| 2 | Maximilian Arndt | GER | +0.08 |
| 3 | Francesco Friedrich | GER | +0.14 |
| 4 | Nico Walther | GER | +0.16 |
| 5 | Lamin Deen | GBR | +0.38 |
The event's official site passed along comments from Oskars Melbardis, the pilot of the leading quartet after Saturday's runs.
"Today is just the first day, tomorrow it's real," he said. "Both runs today were really good and tomorrow we will again give it everything."
Steven Holcomb, who led the United States to four-man medals in each of the past two Olympics (gold in 2010 and bronze in 2014), hasn't been able to match that success so far. His group sits in ninth place heading into Sunday.
Ken Childs of Sliding On Ice notes he does have some momentum after a solid second run:
All told, it's a really close contest between the first four teams. One mistake or one perfect run could be enough to swing the gold medal to any of them. It's going to take to terrific showing from Melbardis and Co. to hold off the German groups.
The event should lead to an intriguing conclusion for the 2015 FIBT World Championships, regardless of which team comes out on top.
Day 6 Results
The sixth day of action at the FIBT World Championships was a busy one for skeleton racers as the women kicked off their competition with a pair of runs before the men vied for gold after getting started Thursday.
As expected, Great Britain's Lizzy Yarnold leads the women with a time of one minute and 55.06 seconds midway through the event as she looks to add another accolade to her resume after taking gold at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. She is being pursued by two Canadians and two Germans with Elisabeth Vathje of Canada hot on her trail in second.
Here is a portion of the leaderboard thus far with full results available at FIBT.com:
| 1 | Lizzy Yarnold | Great Britain | 1:55.06 |
| 2 | Elisabeth Vathje | Canada | 1:55.13 |
| T3 | Jacqueline Loelling | Germany | 1:55.45 |
| T3 | Jane Channell | Canada | 1:55.45 |
| 5 | Tina Hermann | Germany | 1:55.58 |
| 17 | Megan Henry | USA | 1:56.90 |
Yarnold is fairly clear of everyone from third place down, but she has a definite challenge on her hands when it comes to fending off Vathje.
According to FIBT.com, Yarnold is looking forward to battling Vathje down the stretch.
"It's been a great race so far," she said. "But nothing has been decided yet, there are still two runs to go tomorrow. Things could really get exciting."
The Americans won't be a factor in this event, although they did receive an encouraging performance from Megan Henry, who entered the day with no previous World Championship experience.
Henry is in 17th place, and U.S. skeleton head coach Tuffy Latour was impressed by her resolve, per TeamUSA.org.
"Megan was understandably jittery in the first run and she came back as a warrior in the second heat. She had such a different attitude when she came to the line in that second run and battled back. Megan showed her potential today, and if she can slide like that second run in both heats tomorrow, she can move up a few more spots.
"
All eyes will be on Yarnold and Vathje in the final two runs as neither racer can afford to make a mistake due to the minuscule margin between them.
Both will undoubtedly be feeling the pressure, and it will be interesting to see if the big-stage experience of the reigning Olympic champion gives her the edge.
As for the men, Latvia's Martins Dukurs managed to maintain the edge he held over Alexander Tretiakov through two skeleton runs, and he held on to take gold.
Dukurs defeated Tretiakov by nearly seven-tenths of a second, while his brother, Tomass Dukurs won the bronze medal, per FIBT.com:
| Gold | Martins Dukurs | Latvia | - |
| Silver | Alexander Tretiakov | Russia | +0.69 |
| Bronze | Tomass Dukurs | Latvia | +1.52 |
After coming through with the victory, Dukurs was especially happy about the fact that he was able to overcome a hiccup in his second run to win by a fairly comfortable margin, according to FIBT.com.
"Thank you to my team and to our fan," Dukurs said. "It has been a fantastic season. There isn't much room for error on this track. Posting such a good time after such a poor start in the second run really gave me a confidence boost."
The win had to be especially sweet for Dukurs due to the fact that Tretiakov defeated him to take gold at the 2014 Winter Olympics. The Russian was also the reigning world champion, which added even more importance to Dukurs' performance.
Now that Dukurs has finally gotten one over on Tretiakov, it should add even more intrigue to their rivalry moving forward.
Day 5 Results
While the first several days of the 2015 FIBT World Championships were dedicated to bobsleigh, Day 5 featured the official start of the skeleton competition as the men completed the first two heats in Winterberg, Germany.
A few racers seemingly had a legitimate shot to win this event entering the World Championships, and initial runs reflected that. Latvia's Martins Dukurs, who took silver in both the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics, is in the lead with a total time of one minute and 52.04 seconds. He is followed by Russia's Alexander Tretiakov and older brother Tomass Dukurs.
Here is a rundown of the leaders through two runs with full results available at FIBT.com:
| 1 | Martins Dukurs | Latvia | 1:52.04 |
| 2 | Alexander Tretiakov | Russia | 1:52.21 |
| 3 | Tomass Dukurs | Latvia | 1:52.73 |
| 4 | Christopher Grotheer | Germany | 1:52.94 |
| 5 | Axel Jungk | Germany | 1:52.98 |
| 11 | Matthew Antoine | USA | 1:53.63 |
The younger Dukurs is in control currently, but his lead is far from safe. According to FIBT.com, Tretiakov was happy with his performance and seems confident in his ability to close the gap between himself and the leader.
"Everything is going to plan so far," the 2014 Olympic gold medalist said. "Nothing has been decided yet. Martins is sure to keep fighting, but so will I. I didn't have any problems at the start, now we need to analyze where I can improve for tomorrow."
Team USA had high hopes for a podium finish, but those chances are almost nonexistent at this point. After his medal-winning performance in the Sochi Olympics, Matthew Antoine is in 11th place, which puts him more than a second behind bronze medal position.
Per TeamUSA.org, USA skeleton coach Tuffy Latour was somewhat surprised by the poor start, but not overly concerned.
"I thought we'd be more in the mix based on our training times this week. Coming off an Olympic bronze medal, Matt is the top performer on the team, and he's put a lot of pressure on himself. We are three years out from the next Olympics, so if you're going to struggle, this is the year to struggle and work out the kinks. He's pushing himself to get better, and he's hungry for it.
"
Although the United States is likely out of it, the podium battle will be intriguing regardless. Martins Dukurs has a chance to gain some measure of revenge against Tretiakov, but the Russian star won't go quietly.
With two runs remaining, both racers as well as those vying for bronze simply can't afford to slip up.
Day 4 Results
Once again, Francesco Friedrich is a champion.
The two-man bobsledder defended his World Championships title in the event alongside brakesman Thorsten Margis, winning the event in 3:43.30. The silver medal was shared by by Oskars Melbardis and Daumants Dreiskens of Latvia and Johannes Lochner and Joshua Bluhm of Germany, as each team finished 1:06 behind the leaders.
In the day's other event, the Germany 1 team of Axel Jungk, Cathleen Martini, Lisette Thoene, Tina Herrmann, Francesco Friedrich and Martin Grothkopp finished with an aggregate time 3:48.83 to top the day. The Germany 2 team finished in second with a time of 3:49.27 while the first Russian squad rounded out the top three with a time of 3:49.36.
The United States 1 team of Matthew Antoine, Elana Meyers Taylor, Cherrelle Garrett, Anne O'Shea, Steven Holcomb and Adrian Adams found itself in fifth, while the United States 2 team of Kyle Tress, Jammie Greubel Poser, Lauren Gibbs, Megan Henry, Nick Cunningham and James Reed wasn't far behind in seventh.
The World Championships will resume on March 5 with the men's skeleton.
Day 3 Results
Elana Meyers Taylor drove the United States to its first World Championship triumph by a female team in Winterberg, Germany. She paired with Cherrelle Garrett to post some lightning-quick times in four runs over two days of competition to take home the gold.
Here's a look at the podium:
| Gold | Elana Meyers Taylor and Cherrelle Garrett | USA | - |
| Silver | Anja Schneiderheinze and Annika Drazek | GER | +0.43 |
| Bronze | Cathleen Martini and Stephanie Schneider | GER | +1.06 |
USA Bobsled and Skeleton passed along a picture of the victorious duo:
Nick Zaccardi of NBC Olympic Talk notes they were able to blow away the competition by setting three course records during their four runs. It's the first time an American driver has won gold on an Olympic or World Championship level at an event not held in North America since 1959.
Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press highlighted the importance of the win:
The United States also received strong efforts from Jamie Greubel Poser and Lauren Gibbs as well as Jazmine Fenlator and Natalie Deratt. They tried to make a late push onto the podium, but the German teams held firm and kept the pressure on the top American pair.
Meyers Taylor and Garrett responded with another terrific, clean run to close out the win. It left Anja Schneiderheinze and Annika Drazek to claim second while fellow Germans Cathleen Martini and Stephanie Schneider came in third.
It's the latest sign of a positive trend for Meyers Taylor, who took silver in the event with Lauryn Williams at the 2014 Winter Olympics. There's obviously a long way to go before 2018, but this is a highly impressive result as the current cycle moves along.
The action continues on Sunday as the two-man bobsleigh returns to center stage starting with their third runs. Francesco Friedrich and Thorsten Margis of Germany currently hold the lead.
Day 2 Results
Friday marked the second day of competition at the 2015 FIBT World Championships in Winterberg, Germany, and it also kicked off the two-man bobsleigh event as the world's best tandems finished their first two runs.
Defending gold medal winner Francesco Friedrich and brakeman Thorsten Margis of Germany are pacing the field thus far with a total time of one minute and 52.55 seconds as they hold a 0.46-second lead over the Latvian team of Oskars Melbardis and Daumants Dreiskens.
Here is a snapshot of the leaderboard through two runs, courtesy of FIBT.com:
| 1 | Francesco Friedrich and Thorsten Margis (Germany) | 1:52.55 |
| 2 | Oskars Melbardis and Daumants Dreiskens (Latvia) | 1:53.01 |
| 3 | Ugis Zalims and Intars Dambis (Latvia) | 1:53.03 |
| 4 | Yunjong Won and Youngwoo Seo (South Korea) | 1:53.09 |
| 5 | Johannes Lochner and Joshua Bluhm (Germany) | 1:53.14 |
| T6 | Richard Oelsner and Eric Franke (Germany) | 1:53.18 |
| T6 | Rico Peter and Bror van der Zijde (Switzerland) | 1:53.18 |
| 15 | Nick Cunningham and Alex Harrison (USA) | 1:53.60 |
The Germans are currently in a comfortable position, but one slip-up could allow as many as six teams behind them to make a run.
Rather than attempting to protect the lead, though, Friedrich intends to be aggressive, according to FIBT.com.
"Our runs went well," he said. "We will give it everything again on Sunday, we can't afford to play it safe."
Team USA didn't far particularly well Friday, but they weren't expected to be much of a factor. Nick Cunningham and Alex Harrison are in 15th place after a pair of runs, but they intend to move up the standings over their next couple attempts.
Per TeamUSA.org, Cunningham admitted that the adverse weather conditions made for a very difficult day of sledding.
"With the snow and the weather, it's going to be a dog fight out there. We have to get it together. All three U.S. sleds got stuck in the storm, and we'll regroup and see what we can do on Sunday. I'm going to go into it like a two-heat race, and winner takes all. Today is done, and we did the best we could. I've never had a day between heats before, so it's unique, but I'm excited to get out there again.
"
When the competition resumes Sunday, all eyes will be on the German leaders as they attempt to put even more space between them and their pursuers.
If they perform even close to the level they displayed in the first and second runs, though, they will be nearly impossible to catch.
Day 1 Results
The opening day of events was rather uneventful in Germany, with only the first two heats of the women's bobsleigh on the docket. Elana Meyers Taylor and Cherrelle Garrett of the United States opened an early lead halfway through their four scheduled runs, posting near-identical times to sit ahead of a pair of home-country favorites.
Meyers Taylor and Garrett went through their first run in 56.65 and their second in 56.64, marking the two best times of the day. They are 0:00.39 seconds ahead of German pair Anja Schneiderheinze and Annika Drazek and another 0:00.13 clear of Cathleen Martini and Stephanie Schneider. While that lead may look minimal, Schneiderheinze and Drazek are barely closer to Taylor and Garrett than they are sixth-place Jazmine Fenlator and Natalie Deratt.
| 1 | Elana Meyers Taylor and Cherrelle Garrett, United States | 1:53.29 |
| 2 | Anja Schneiderheinze and Annika Drazek, Germany | 1:53.68 |
| 3 | Cathleen Martini and Stephanie Schneider, Germany | 1:53.81 |
| 4 | Stefanie Szczurek and Erline Nolte, Germany | 1:54.09 |
| 5 | Elfje Willemsen and Sophie Vercruyssen, Belgium | 1:54.11 |
German teams comprise three of the top-four spots. The United States, which entered three two-woman teams, are the only other country with multiple representatives in the top 10. Fenlator and Deratt are in sixth place, while Jamie Greubel Poser and Lauren Gibbs are one spot back in seventh.
If Meyers Taylor and Garrett are able to pull off the victory, they would make history as the first women's team to win in United States history, per an Associated Press report (via Yahoo Sports). Meyers Taylor has experience coming close and missing out, as she held a lead in last year's Winter Olympics before faltering in the final two heats.
The two-woman bobsleigh event will have its medal-deciding runs Saturday.
Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter.
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