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WHISTLER, British Columbia — In an exciting finish, Germany’s Julia Taubitz claimed the title of women’s singles luge world champion for the second time, narrowly surpassing Emily Sweeney from the U.S. in a thrilling second and final run on Friday night.

Taubitz completed her two runs in a total of 1 minute, 17.206 seconds, marking her sixth consecutive medal at the world championships in the singles category, which now includes two gold medals and four silvers. “I’m feeling really excited, but I’m so sorry for Emily,” Taubitz expressed, acknowledging the tight competition. “It’s so close here, and Emily had a fantastic run. Any of us could be on top at any moment.”

Merle Fraebel, another German athlete, secured the second spot with a time of 1:17.247, while Sweeney, who led after the first run, finished in third with a time of 1:17.249. This achievement marks Sweeney’s third career medal at the world championships, following a bronze in singles in 2019 and a silver in mixed singles the previous Thursday alongside her U.S. teammate Johnny Gustafson. “I’m really happy to walk away with a medal,” Sweeney commented after her performance.

For the U.S. team, Ashley Farquharson finished in sixth place, and Summer Britcher came in tenth. With her medal, Sweeney contributed to USA Luge’s history by securing the 23rd medal at world championships, which includes four in women’s singles events. Notably, Erin Hamlin won gold at Lake Placid in New York in 2009 and then garnered silver at Igls, Austria in 2017, while Sweeney earned her bronze at Winterberg, Germany in 2019.

In the men’s doubles event, the outcome was not surprising as it was won by a German sled; however, the identity of the winning sled was unexpected. Hannes Orlamuender and Paul Gubitz emerged as the world champions after posting the fastest times in both heats. The Latvian duo of Martins Bots and Roberts Plume finished in second place, followed by Germany’s well-known team of Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt, who currently lead the World Cup standings, in third place.

Orlamuender and Gubitz are positioned sixth in this season’s World Cup standings. Wendl and Arlt have now medaled at the world championships for the tenth consecutive time. The top U.S. team featuring Marcus Mueller and Ansel Haugsjaa concluded the event in seventh place.

In the women’s doubles competition, Austria’s Selina Egle and Lara Kipp successfully defended their world champion title. They finished ahead of Germany’s Jessica Degenhardt and Cheyenne Rosenthal in the second spot, while fellow Germans Dajana Eitberger and Magdalena Matschina took third place. The U.S. team, represented by Chevonne Forgan and Sophia Kirkby, who earned a bronze medal last year, placed fifth in the event.

Looking ahead, the upcoming events include the men’s singles race and the team relay, scheduled for Saturday, which will wrap up the world championships.
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