Fischnaller wins overall World Cup - Müller World Champion
Salzburg (FIL/10 April 2023) It remained exciting until the very end at the 2022/2023 EBERSPÄCHER World Cup in the men's singles for the big JOSKA crystal globe. Only 36 points separated Felix Loch (GER) from the leader Dominik Fischnaller (ITA) before the final in Winterberg. But both favorites messed up. Felix Loch, after a major mistake in the upper part at the first run, could only finish in seventh place. Dominik Fischnaller made it exciting. He made a mistake in his second run and ended up two places ahead of his opponent. The two places were enough for Fischnaller to win the overall title. With 812 points, the 30-year-old South Tyrolean claimed the first overall World Cup of his career, ahead of three-time Olympic Champion Felix Loch (767 p.) and runner-up Max Langenhan (GER/685).
"I am very happy and feel extremely good. The season was long and I didn't manage any top placings lately. Felix, on the other hand, got going better and better. The fact that fifth place was enough at the final is really great. When I crossed the finish line I didn't really know where Felix was after the second run and it took me a bit to realize that I really made it", said Olympic bronze medalist Fischnaller. Felix Loch was also satisfied and congratulated the overall winner: "Dominik absolutely deserved the overall victory. I am very happy for him. Apart from the bumpy start in Innsbruck, I am mega-happy with the season. I'm also really pleased that Max has come back like this. That's really important for our team looking ahead to the next years."
Max Langenhan had been in a league of his own since the start of the year 2023. The 24-year-old had to miss the first three World Cups due to a hand injury and only competed in his first race at the fourth stop in Sigulda, Latvia. With one win and one second place he went to the World Championships in Oberhof, Germany. On his home track he took silver behind surprise World Champion Jonas Müller of Austria and World Championships` bronze behind Loch and Müller in Sprint. Afterwards he started his winning streak and stood on top of the podium in all six World Cup races in Altenberg, Winterberg, St. Moritz and the final in Winterberg. This catapulted him to third place in the overall World Cup and discipline World Cup.
World Championship title with old sled on favorite track
Jonas Müller from Vorarlberg, Austria, became World Champion in the Sprint in Winterberg in 2019 and also secured the World Championship title in the top discipline, the men's singles, in Oberhof in 2023 with nerves of steel. The 25-year-old sports soldier had already led in the first run and set another best time in the second heat on the freshly renovated World Championship’s track. He thus broke the winning streak of the Germans, who had already claimed seven World Championship titles in the LOTTO Thüringen Ice Arena. "After my crash in Sigulda, my sled was totally broken. I flew home the day after and unpacked the old sled. I immediately got along well with the old sled. I like Oberhof very much. I can well call it my favorite track. I've been fast here several times. And as you can see, the old sled doesn't seem to be that bad." The red-white-red team of the Alpine Republic also took the bronze medal with the Olympic Champion of 2018 David Gleirscher. The Tyrolean was very happy about the team success: "A medal at the World Championships is sensational and with Jonas as World Champion it is even more fun. A double success for Austria would have been possible, but in the end it was bronze for me. I made mistakes and for that it is absolutely fine". Overall World Cup winner Fischnaller had crashed at the World Championships in Oberhof. Felix Loch finished fourth, ahead of Sigulda winner Kristers Aparjods (LAT) and former World Champion Wolfgang Kindl from Austria in sixth place.
