Two teenagers mark mini milestone in luge history

 St. Moritz / Lausanne (RWH): Two German teenagers have written a new miniature chapter in luge history. Jessica Degenhardt and Vanessa Schneider – one 17 and from Altenberg in Saxony, and the other 8 days older and from Sonneberg in Thuringia – won the inaugural women's doubles race at the 2020 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in Lausanne.

 With their win, Jessica Degenhardt and Vanessa Schneider have made it into the annals of the International Luge Federation (FIL) as the first Olympic gold medal winners in the women’s doubles. And they achieved this feat on the traditional natural ice track in St. Moritz, a mere 35 kilometres as the crow flies from Davos, the birthplace of luge. The first international luge race was held in Davos in 1883 so there aren’t many locations more steeped in history than this. “It is really crazy. We can’t imagine, that we write history”, Jessica Degenhardt said.

 The German pairing beat the two Canadians Caitlin Nash/Natalie Corless, who already attracted international attention last month. On their home track in Whistler, the two 16-year-olds became the first female-only duo to qualify for the Viessmann World Cup in a field made up exclusively of male competitors. As a reward for their efforts, Caitlin Nash/Natalie Corless won a bronze medal in the FIL’s America-Pacific Championships and also made a huge number of headlines.

 The remaining gold medals at the third ever Youth Winter Olympic Games went to Merle Fräbel of Germany, Latvia’s Gints Berzins and the German duo Moritz Jäger/Valentin Steudte. To round off the luge events, the team relay will take place on 20 January 2020 (Monday).