Luge World Cup

Kindl finishes third in the single-seater in Oberhof

Wolfgang Kindl

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Wolfgang Kindl finished on the podium at the artificial track luge World Cup in Oberhof on Sunday. As in the doubles event on Saturday, the 36-year-old Tyrolean also finished third in the single-seater, beaten only by the German local heroes Max Langenhan and Felix Loch. 

Behind Kindl, three other ÖRV lugers - Nico Gleirscher, European Champion Jonas Müller and David Gleirscher - finished fourth to sixth.

"Third place in the single-seater almost feels like a victory. Considering my handicap, I got the maximum out of the start, the material went really well, my runs were really good," explained Kindl, who has knee and shoulder problems after his crash in Altenberg. The veteran finished second behind Germany 1 in the subsequent mixed doubles competition with Thomas Steu and Selina Egle/Lara Kipp.

Positive results ahead of the World Championships
Nico Gleirscher and Lisa Schulte finished third in the mixed singles, just ahead of Kindl and Madeleine Egle. The hosts celebrated a double victory here. This meant that there were podium finishes for the ÖRV in all six competitions in Oberhof. On Saturday, Madeleine Egle in the single and Egle/Kipp in the doubles' competition ensured red-white-red victories. "It may not have been the perfect weekend, but it was certainly a very good one. Everything is still possible in the overall World Cup," said Gleirscher, who finally relinquished the lead in the single-seater to Langenhan.

ÖRV head coach Christian Eigentler explained that they were not able to keep up with the speed of the Germans on Sunday. "Nevertheless, we succeeded in all disciplines and successfully defended our lead in the women's overall World Cup. That makes us very confident about Whistler and the World Cup final on the Asian tracks." The World Championships will take place in Whistler, Canada, in just under two weeks' time, with the arrival on Tuesday.