US team third in relay
Zach Bradt/U.S. Luge Association January 20, 2009
Photo: Alexander Hassenstein/Bongarts/Getty Images
Mark Grimmette and Brian Martin compete during the Luge European Championship Double competition Jan. 21, 2006, in Winterberg near Kassel, Germany.
Oberhof, Germany (Jan. 18, 2009) - In the second day of World Cup competition, the U.S. team reached the podium Sunday, claiming third place in the team relay race. The relay team was comprised of 2002 Olympian Bengt Walden (Westborough, Mass., and Lake Placid, N.Y.); 2007 World Cup team relay gold medalist Erin Hamlin (Remsen, N.Y.); and 2002 Olympic silver medalists Mark Grimmette (Muskegon, Mich., and Lake Placid, N.Y.) and Brian Martin (Palo Alto, Calif., and Lake Placid, N.Y.).
Walden completed the first run with the sixth fastest time of 48.314 seconds. Hamlin closed the gap, moving the U.S. team to fifth place after a quick run of 50.965 and a combined interim time of one minute, 39.279. The U.S. doubles team of Grimmette and Martin finished the race with a time of 50.347 seconds, shifting the U.S. team to third with a combined finish time of 2:29.626. The U.S. is also ranked third overall in the season long team relay ranking.
German sliders grabbed the first-place position, coming in with an overall combined time of 2:28.044. The German relay team consisted of men's singles competitor Jan Eichhorn, 47.892 seconds; women's singles second-place finisher Natalie Geisenberger, 50.158 seconds; and the doubles team of Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt, 49.994 seconds. The Austrian team was second in a total time of 2:29.140.
German control of the podium was not mitigated in the women's singles division as they again claimed the top three positions in the women's singles event, held earlier in the day. German slider Tatjana Hüfner took gold with a two-run combined time of 1:26.493 seconds. Following Hüfner were German teammates Geisenberger and Anke Wischnewski, who finished second and third, respectively. Geisenberger crossed the finish line with a combined time of 1:26.621, and Wischnewski finished with a time of 1:27.356.
Erin Hamlin, a 2008 Verizon U.S. National Champion, took 24th, finishing with a two-run combined time of 1:38.752. Hamlin experienced a major problem in her first run, finishing with a first-run time of 54.799 seconds. She recovered for her second run to post a time of 43.953 seconds, ninth overall for the heat. Despite the poor finish, Hamlin was able to maintain her sixth place overall World Cup ranking.
Racing continues next weekend from Altenberg, Germany.
See the entire World Cup at www.universalsports.com.
For more on the Fastest Sport on Ice®, log on to www.usaluge.org.
Walden completed the first run with the sixth fastest time of 48.314 seconds. Hamlin closed the gap, moving the U.S. team to fifth place after a quick run of 50.965 and a combined interim time of one minute, 39.279. The U.S. doubles team of Grimmette and Martin finished the race with a time of 50.347 seconds, shifting the U.S. team to third with a combined finish time of 2:29.626. The U.S. is also ranked third overall in the season long team relay ranking.
German sliders grabbed the first-place position, coming in with an overall combined time of 2:28.044. The German relay team consisted of men's singles competitor Jan Eichhorn, 47.892 seconds; women's singles second-place finisher Natalie Geisenberger, 50.158 seconds; and the doubles team of Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt, 49.994 seconds. The Austrian team was second in a total time of 2:29.140.
German control of the podium was not mitigated in the women's singles division as they again claimed the top three positions in the women's singles event, held earlier in the day. German slider Tatjana Hüfner took gold with a two-run combined time of 1:26.493 seconds. Following Hüfner were German teammates Geisenberger and Anke Wischnewski, who finished second and third, respectively. Geisenberger crossed the finish line with a combined time of 1:26.621, and Wischnewski finished with a time of 1:27.356.
Erin Hamlin, a 2008 Verizon U.S. National Champion, took 24th, finishing with a two-run combined time of 1:38.752. Hamlin experienced a major problem in her first run, finishing with a first-run time of 54.799 seconds. She recovered for her second run to post a time of 43.953 seconds, ninth overall for the heat. Despite the poor finish, Hamlin was able to maintain her sixth place overall World Cup ranking.
Racing continues next weekend from Altenberg, Germany.
See the entire World Cup at www.universalsports.com.
For more on the Fastest Sport on Ice®, log on to www.usaluge.org.
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