Sigulda, Nov. 28, LETA. Latvian bobsleigh duo Oskars Ķibermanis / Matīss Miknis won the second place in the third stage of the World Cup in Sigulda on Saturday, while Oskars Melbārdis, who took the first race this season, took the seventh position with pusher Intars Dambis.
In the sum of two races, the fastest was the winner of the first two stages from Francesco Friedrich of Germany. He showed a shared best time in the second race and finished with a time of 49.31 seconds, which is a new track record.
Kibermanis’ two in the second race was as fast as the leaders in the start, but the mistakes made in the middle of the track prevented him from fighting for victory. The crew in second place lost 0.10 seconds to the leader in the sum of two races.
Simon Friedler from Switzerland was another 0.32 seconds slower, followed by Christians Haoff / Christian Hammers and Johannes Lohners / Eric Franke.
Melbārdis won the seventh place in his first competition of this season, who lost 0.70 seconds to the German. This crew showed the tenth start time in the second race. Meanwhile, Ralfs Bērziņš / Edgars Nemme was in the second place in the second race, but finished in ninth place.
In the first race, the fastest time was reached by the two led by Ķibermanis, who was the third fastest at the start, but finished in the first place, setting a new track record – 49.45 seconds.
The winner of the last two stages from Germany, Friedrich, in the first race in the middle of the track, made a serious mistake and lost 0.02 seconds to Kiberman. The third place was won by the bobsleigh led by the Swiss Simon Friedley, who lost 0.12 seconds to Kiberman.
Blackbeard, who started his first World Cup this season, was eighth in the start with pusher Intars Dambi, but was able to improve his position on the track and ranked sixth in the split, as the German Johannes Johannes Lhner also had a 0.28-second deficit.
The third two from Latvia Bērziņš / Nemme showed the fifth fastest start time and finished in eighth place, losing 0.39 seconds to his compatriot.
13 crews are participating in the third stage of the World Cup in Sigulda.
The top five was the same in the two stages last weekend. The victory in both competitions was celebrated by the German bobsleigh virtuoso Francesco Friedrich, but the best result among Latvians was achieved by Bērziņš, who was twice fifth. Kiberman was in the sixth and eighth place, Dāvis Kaufmanis was the tenth on Saturday, but Emīls Cipulis took the 12th place on Sunday.
In the first stages, Melbārdis was like a track enthusiast or “spurbob”.
Friedrich, led by Lohner by 71 points, leads the World Cup in three stages with 675 points. Another German Hafer is third with 575 points, Michael Fogt is 16 points less, and Ķibermanis finishes the top five with 546 points. Bērziņš is in the seventh position with 520 points, while Melbārdis (168), Dāvis Kaufmanis (144) and Emīls Cipulis (128) divide the 13th-15th place, respectively.
Another doubles competition will take place on Sunday, but on Saturday there were also women’s crews on the track, among whom Latvia was not represented.
Latvia and Germany are the only countries in these World Cup stages that have the right to start with three crews.
Bobsleigh players from the USA, Canada and Great Britain, as well as Russian and Austrian crews do not participate in the stages, because some athletes from these countries were found to have Covid-19 upon arrival in Latvia.
Last season, Ķibermanis won in both stages of Sigulda. In the first stage, Friedrich created a fierce competition for him, but in the next stage, the German did not start, winning the second place for the Swiss Simon Friedl. Last year, when Sigulda debuted in the World Cup, Friedrich was unbeaten in both stages.
In the 2019/2020 season, Ķibermanis won the second place in the overall standings, conceding only to Friedrich, but Bērziņš did not start in two stages and ranked 14th. In the quadruple for Latvians, the fourth and 17th position, respectively, but in the combination – the third and 15th place. Ķibermanis became the European champion and won bronze in the planetary championship, but Bērziņš had a place in the second tenth in these matches.
Last season, Melbārdis started in the World Cup only in Sigulda in the doubles competition, where he was fifth, but in the European Championship – fourth. In the planetary championship, the Olympic champion had places in the top ten in doubles and fours.
Since 2006, the International Federation of Bobsleigh and Skeletons (IBSF) has been organizing the World Cup stages together, dividing five sets of medals in one stage – in the skeleton for ladies and gentlemen, in bobsleigh for men in doubles and fours, and for bobsleighers in doubles.
However, the Sigulda track is currently not suitable for bobsleigh quad competitions, therefore two men’s doubles competitions are taking place in Latvia in one stage.
The next two stages will take place in Innsbruck, but one stage is planned in Winterberg after the new year. Stages will continue in St. Moritz and Königssee, but the end of the season was scheduled for mid-March on the Yanchin track, where the 2022 Beijing Olympics will take place. True, the IBSF announced on Saturday that the Yanchin track will not be the last stage of the season.
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