Koenigssee (pps) Despite being 15 points behind David Moeller (Germany) on the overall Viessmann Luge World Cup rankings, Italy’s top luger Armin Zoeggeler is full of self-confidence. “Now we’re getting to the tracks I like”, explained two-time Olympic champion and five-time World champion Zoeggeler prior to the fifth leg of the series in Koenigssee next weekend. After the competition on the oldest artificially refrigerated track world-wide in Koenigssee, the technically demanding ice labyrinths in Altenberg (February 2-3) and Sigulda (February 14-15 and 16-17) will have to be tackled. And they are more to Zoeggeler’s liking than the “sliding” tracks in Calgary, Winterberg and Innsbruck-Igls. “I’m sure that I’ll be heading the rankings again at the end of the season”, said Zoeggeler.

“Armin is currently holding the track record in Koenigssee – that’s all I need to say”, is David Moeller’s comment. The German achieved, similar to his competitor from South Tyrol, two Viessmann Luge World Cup victories this winter. 25-year-old Moeller is not yet giving up hope to capture the overall World Cup ranking for the first time: “I need to have a clear margin going into the final in Sigulda because somehow, we German athletes seem to have problems tackling this track.”

Similar to Moeller, his compatriot Silke Kraushaar-Pielach is currently wearing the “yellow bib” of the World Cup leader. After her victory at the World Cup opener in Lake Placid, the 1998 Olympic champion and 2005 World champion went into the Christmas break with no more than five points ahead of team-mate Tatjana Huefner. World champion Tatjana Huefer is bursting with self-confidence after her “hat-trick” with victories in Calgary, Winterberg and Innsbruck-Igls. “After three successive wins the overall World Cup has surely become an issue. Even though I’m trying to tackle one event after the other”, the 24-year-old said. She has changed and that accounts for her good performances: “I’m more relaxed”, explained Tatjana Huefner.

After their second victory this season Germany’s Patric Leitner-Alexander Resch are heading the overall Viessmann Luge World Cup rankings with 355 points ahead of Christian Oberstolz-Patrick Gruber (Italy/320). If Oberstolz-Gruber had won the event in Innsbruck-Igls they would be just five points behind Leitner-Resch.