The German pilots Johannes Lochner and Laura Nolte are winners in the overall two-man bobsleigh World Cup for the first time.
World Champion Lochner won together with Georg Fleischhauer in Sigulda, Latvia, after he had already laid the foundation for the overall victory in the men’s race with his success on Saturday. Olympic champion Nolte set two best times on the track, which she did not like, and thus distanced herself from her biggest rival Kim Kalicki. She finished second in the bobsled with Anabel Galander, 0.14 seconds back.
Three out of four possible trophies for the overall World Cup in bobsleigh went to German pilots. Francesco Friedrich had previously won the four-man bobsleigh. The American Kaillie Humphries prevailed in the monobob.
Lochner overall winner for the second time, premiere for Nolte
Lochner’s 71-point lead before the season finale was no longer in real danger. At the start, he had to let his team-mates Adam Ammour/Issam Ammour, who ended up fourth, go first in the first run, but then he showed his driving skills. Although he didn’t remain flawless either, compared to the Olympic champion duo Friedrich/Thorsten Margis, there were fewer mistakes. In the end, both sleds separated by 0.36 seconds. Third place went to Michael Vogt/Sandro Michel, 0.44 seconds behind.
“Johannes Lochner has the flexibility to let the bobsleigh run,” national coach René Spies praised the world champion, who had won all two-man bobsleigh races since December. His new strong pusher Georg Fleischhauer contributes to the results. In the 2017/2018 season, Lochner had already won the overall World Cup in the large sled.
“It’s a nice end to the season,” Nolte said of her success. After many falls in the past, her primary concern was to arrive safely. “I was relatively nervous at the start, but I also knew that it would be a good time if we got through turn 13,” said Nolte.
