Latsch (ck) - The head-to-head at the top of the women´s event between Lavrentjeva and Giet went into the next round. In Laces once again Lavrentjeva was the luckier one. Three times the first two places were shared between the two of them, twice the Russian was in front, once Renate Gietl took the lead. Both are professional athletes, Lavrentjeva has been for years, Gietl took two months off her job (in kindergarten) for this season. “Being able to race and train at the track several times a week makes you feel differently. And it is a different mindset if you fully concentrate on the sport”, she said. With winning in Latsch/Laces Lavrentjeva made a huge step towards winning the overall GERMANPIPE World Cup. The odds were a bit against her, as she does not like warm weather very much. “It was warmer today during the race than yesterday in training. My first run was not ideal, the second was better. I prefer really cold weather. So I am very happy that I could win this race.” One tenth of a second was her winning margin ahead Gietl. “I had a mistake in my first run which cost me time. I almost touched the board, I could already feel it. My second run was good, but if you look closely you can always find reasons why or where you lost or won a tenth of a second. When it gets that close it is always a bit of luck and I hope that one day the luck will be on my side,” she said. “Of course it is bad luck that I did not manage to win, but I am also aware that only four hundredth behind me there is the next Russin.” Julia Vetlova seems to show her best performances when it comes close to Championships. Her third place today was her fourth third place in the World Cup. But the Russian was also runner up in last year´s World Championships. “I am happy about today´s result, but for me the peak of the season and my personal goal is the European Championship in three weeks in Olang. I will do everything for a good result there.”

The second time in the current season Patrick Pigneter (ITA) managed to win both races, the doubleseater´s and the men´s event. “I used the same equipment again as I did in Passeier at the beginning of the season,” said Pigneter, who had been trying new parts in Umhausen. “In the training runs Hannes Clara was a lot faster than me, but my first run in the race was great, so I was very calm when I went into the second run.” In fact Hannes Clara was the only one who could challenge Patrick Pigneter. He will be a medal contender for the upcoming World Junior Championships in Latsch/Laces in two weeks. “I have been experimenting a bit in the training runs, but I am very satisfied with my performance today. Everybody in our team seems to be so strong this is for sure an additional motivation for me.”
After four years without a podium finish the former World Champion and two times runner up in European Championships Robert Batkowski (AUT) came third. In Umhausen he already achieved a new track record, but could not achieve a second good run. “The record in Umhausen was a great basis to build on. With the high density among the top people it only takes a small problem and you are far away from top results. It seems like over night I have learned racing again.”
The winner of Umhausen, Gernot Schwab (AUT) was handicapped in today´s race. He severely cut his finger when he was preparing his sled last night. The injury needed stitches and he was relieved to be able to compete at all. Eventually he finished sixth.

The GERMANPIPE World Cup will be continued in Krynica, Poland with the final event (two World Cup races) from February 20th to 24th.
Results:
Women(15):

1. Ekatharina LAVRENTJEVA (RUS), 1:06,24(1), 1:06,58(2), 2:12,82
2. Renate GIETL (ITA), 1:06,32(2), 1:06,60(3), 2:12,92
3. Julia VETLOVA (RUS), 1:06,39(3), 1:06,57(1), 2.12,96
4. Melanie BATKOWSKI (AUT), 1:06,58(4), 1:06,84(5), 2:13,42
5. Renate KASSLATTER (ITA), 1:06,80(5), 1:06,81, 2:13,61
6. Kinga GAWLAS (POL), 1:06,83(6), 1:07,05(6), 2:13,88
7. Evelyn LANTHALER (ITA), 1:06,93(7), 1:07,10(7), 2:14,03
8. Marlies WAGNER (AUT), 1:07,41(9), 1:08,19(8), 2:15,60
9. Melanie SCHWARZ (ITA), 2:15,80
10. Tina UNTERBERGER (AUT), 2:16,37
11. Michaela MAURER (GER), 2:17,53
12. Katrin MLADEK (AUT), 2:18,13

Men (34):
1. Patrick PIGNETER (ITA), 1:04,79(1), 1:05,45(2), 2:10,24
2. Hannes CLARA (ITA), 1:05,32(3), 1:05,25(1), 2:10,57
3. Robert BATKOWSKI (AUT), 1:05,41(4), 1:05,54(3), 2:10,95
4. Andreas CASTIGLIONI (ITA), 1:05,02(2), 1:06,04(8), 2:11,06
5. Mathias RAINER (ITA), 1:05,46(5), 1:05,79(6), 2:11,25
6. Gernot SCHWAB (AUT), 1:05,65(7), 1:05,94(4), 2:11,43
7. Florian BREITENBERGER (ITA), 1:05,55(6), 1:05,94(7), 2:11,49
8. Gerald KAMMERLANDER (AUT), 1:06,12(8), 1:05,78(4), 2:11,90
9. Michael SCHEIKL (AUT), 1:06,12(8), 1:06,35(10), 2:12,47
10. Georg MAURER (GER), 1:06,63(13), 1:06,33(9), 2:12,96
12. Marcus GRAUSAM (GER), 2:13,23
15. Christian WICHAN (GER), 2:13,59
17. Björn KIERSPEL (GER), 2:13,97
18. John GIBSON (CAN), 2:14,47
20. Kaj JOHNSON (CAN), 2:15,39

World Cup Rankings (4/6):
Women:
1. Ekatharina LAVRENTJEVA (RUS) 385
2. Renate GIETL (ITA) 330
3. Melanie BATKOWSKI (AUT) 275
4. Renate KASSLATTER (ITA) 240
5. Julia VETLOVA (RUS) 208
6. Marlies WAGNER (AUT) 203
7. Tina UNTERBERGER (AUT) 174
8. Kinga GAWLAS (POL) 164
9. Melanie SCHWARZ (ITA) 135
10. Katrin MLADEK (AUT) 132
11. Veronika NACHMANN (GER) 120
16. Michaela MAURER(GER) 68
Men: 1. Patrick PIGNETER (ITA) 370
2. Florian BREITENBERGER (ITA) 276
3. Gernot SCHWAB (AUT) 275
4. Robert BATKOWSKI (AUT) 222
5. Hannes CLARA (ITA) 206
6. Gerald KAMMERLANDER (AUT) 204
7. Anton BLASBICHLER (ITA) 177
8. Florian BATKOWSKI (AUT) 157
9. Mathias RAINER (ITA) 143
10.Thomas KAMMERLANDER 136
11. Georg MAURER (GER) 130
11. Martin PSENNER (ITA) 130
13. Marcus GRAUSAM 112
14. Björn KIERSPEL 110
15. Christian WICHAN 105
17. Kaj JOHNSON 89
23. John GIBSON (CAN) 63

Chris Karl
FIL Media Service

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