Oberhof (pps) Italy's two-time Olympic champion Armin Zoeggeler is on the brink of winning his ninth victory in the Viessmann Luge World Cup. So far, the five-time World champion has managed to earn 555 points and, prior to the last stop of the World Cup in Oberhof next weekend (January 16-17, 2010), his lead on runner-up Albert Demchenko (464) amounts to 91 points.
At the last two events, the Olympic runner-up of Russia has the chance to collect a maximum of 664 points. This is why Zoeggelers fifth consecutive overall victory seems to be a foregone conclusion. Especially so, since the final of the Viessmann Luge World Cup will be carried out in Cesana, Italy on January 30-31, 2010 and Zoeggeler has up to now never been defeated on this Olympic luge track since its opening in 2005.
Thus, Zoeggeler is following in the footsteps of record winner Markus Prock of Austria who has earned a total of ten overall World Cup victories between 1987 and 2002. Since the 36-year old luger from South Tyrol intends to end his glamorous career in the sport of luge only after the 2011 World Championships on his home track in Cesana, he might very well draw level with Prock as far as the number of overall victories are concerned. His so far 48 individual victories - he earned the last one in Winterberg just last weekend - will surely remain unrivalled for quite a long time.
In the women's singles Germany's Natalie Geisenberger kicked up the excitement a notch with her second season's victory in Winterberg. With the fifth World Cup victory in her career the 21-year old athlete (540 points) diminished the gap to current World Cup leader and compatriot Tatjana Huefner (570 points) to just 30 points. And current World champion Erin Hamlin (USA) is getting better and better too, finished on third rank in Winterberg just as she already did in Lillehammer. "And to think that I achieved this feat on a track in Germany makes me really happy," the first US gold medal winner explained afterwards.
However, the question as to the eventual overall winners in the double-seater is still open. The four teams at the top are separated by just 43 points. Despite their slip-up in Winterberg Germany's Olympic runners-up André Florschuetz-Torsten Wustlich are currently on top position with 442 points. Thanks to their first victory this season, Italy's European and defending champions Christian Oberstolz-Patrick Gruber are boasting 440 points and are thus rather very close to the front-runners. Additionally, Germany's four-time World champions Patric Leitner-Alexander Resch (430 points) as well as Austria's Olympic champions Andreas Linger-Wolfgang Linger (399 points) might still have a chance to grab the overall World Cup victory.
Schedule Viessmann Luge World Cup Oberhof
Saturday, January 16, 2010:
10:00 hrs: double-seater
14:05 hrs: women's singles
Sunday, January 17, 2010:
09:25 hrs: men's singles
13:00 hrs: Tiscover Team Relay
