From Igls, AUT
(February 16, 2023) – Great Britain’s Tabitha Stoecker and Austria’s Julia Erlacher both entered the seventh race of the 2022/2023 IBSF European Cup women’s skeleton tour still looking for their first career gold medal. By the end of the day, both women had that gold.
Stoecker took the lead after the first heat. Her advantage was .34 over Erlacher, with teammate Freya Tarbit in the hunt in third. On the second run Tarbit set a quick pace, enough to take the lead and guarantee Great Britain at least one medal in the event.
Erlacher was next, and her second effort was the quickest of the heat as she sled well into the lead by .24 over Tarbit to clinch her first ever IBSF international competition medal. And that left Stoecker between Erlacher and gold.
Stoecker, who had two European Cup medals and a pair of Juinor World Championship silvers coming into the event, had a quick start off the top and an otherwise great slide. However a little hiccup in the bottom labyrinth caused her to bleed time back to Erlacher, and as the Brit crossed the line she was in a dead heat with Erlacher to give both women their first career IBSF gold medal.
For Stoecker, the gold was her third medal in four races and her fifth straight top five. for Erlacher, the gold was her first medal on an IBSF tour. Her previous best finish was fourth, also in Igls.
Tarbit gave Great Britain two medals in the competition with a bronze. She’s medaled in all five European Cup competitions she’s entered.
On the outside of the podium looking in was GErmany’s Viktoria Donicke, who made her first start in women’s skeleton after previously racing as a brakewoman for Kim Kalicki, Laura Nolte, and Anne Lobenstein. Estonia’s Darta Zunte finished fifth, while Austria’s Annia Unterscheider rounded out the top six.
Ashlyn Bland, making her first start ever in Igls, finished 11th, while teammate Eleanor Griffin finished 14th in her second European Cup start.
With one race left to go on the European Cup women’s skeleton season, USA’s Mystique Ro is still the overall point leader, with Freya Tarbit 43 points back. Ro is not entered in the weekend’s racing, so if Tarbit finishes fifth or better in the final race of the season, she will win the season title.
Results:
| Pos | Name | Nation | Bib | Start 1 | Start 2 | Run 1 | Run 2 | Finish |
| 1 | Julia Erlacher | AUT | 4 | 5.41 | 5.34 | 53.75 | 53.56 | 1:47.31 |
| 1 | Tabitha Stoecker | GBR | 7 | 5.35 | 5.33 | 53.41 | 53.90 | 1:47.31 |
| 3 | Freya Tarbit | GBR | 9 | 5.57 | 5.54 | 53.86 | 53.69 | 1:47.55 |
| 4 | Viktoria Donicke | GER | 21 | 5.27 | 5.22 | 54.08 | 53.69 | 1:47.77 |
| 5 | Darta Zunte | EST | 5 | 5.73 | 5.72 | 54.20 | 54.10 | 1:48.30 |
| 6 | Annia Unterscheider | AUT | 8 | 5.83 | 5.77 | 54.39 | 54.15 | 1:48.54 |
| 7 | Sara Schmied | SUI | 10 | 5.64 | 5.67 | 54.55 | 54.05 | 1:48.60 |
| 8 | Hanna Staub | GER | 13 | 5.87 | 5.85 | 54.41 | 54.54 | 1:48.95 |
| 9 | Viktoria Hansova | GER | 6 | 5.68 | 5.69 | 54.77 | 54.56 | 1:49.33 |
| 10 | Julia Simmchen | GER | 20 | 5.96 | 5.90 | 55.00 | 54.43 | 1:49.43 |
| 11 | Ashlyn Bland | GBR | 14 | 5.46 | 5.45 | 55.04 | 54.70 | 1:49.74 |
| 12 | Alessia Gatti | ITA | 19 | 5.37 | 5.33 | 55.04 | 54.91 | 1:49.95 |
| 13 | Carolin Alexa Andrae | SUI | 11 | 5.58 | 5.54 | 54.88 | 55.13 | 1:50.01 |
| 14 | Eleanor Griffin | GBR | 16 | 5.89 | 5.91 | 55.55 | 55.32 | 1:50.87 |
| 15 | Angel Osakue | ITA | 12 | 5.67 | 5.73 | 55.90 | 55.24 | 1:51.14 |
| 16 | Clara Aznar | ESP | 3 | 5.64 | 5.67 | 55.92 | 55.77 | 1:51.69 |
| 17 | Paulina Ewald Grondal | SWE | 15 | 6.28 | 6.18 | 55.86 | 55.87 | 1:51.73 |
| 18 | Annelies van Dijk | NED | 2 | 5.78 | 5.84 | 56.78 | 56.21 | 1:52.99 |
| 19 | Serena Juan | ESP | 17 | 5.84 | 5.83 | 57.41 | 56.66 | 1:54.07 |
| 20 | Agurtzane Castrillo | ESP | 18 | 6.75 | 6.71 | 57.68 | 57.39 | 1:55.07 |
| 21 | Federica Voghera | ITA | 1 | 5.89 | 58.29 |
