From Sigulda, LAT
(February 17, 2023) – Tina Hermann made it interesting on her second run, but at the end of the IBSF World Cup women’s skeleton season, it was the German winning both gold and her second crystal globe.
Hermann led Canada’s Mimi Rahneva and Great Britain’s Brogan Crowley after the first heat, with Great Britain’s Laura Deas and Belgium’s Kim Meylemans lingering in fourth and fifth respectively. In the second heat both Deas and Meylemans put down very quick and clean slides, while both Rahneva and Crowley had issues. The end result was Deas leading with Meylemans second with only Hermann to go.
Hermann was the final slider of the World Cup skeleton season. She needed only to stay ahead of Kimberley Bos, then in third place, to win her second overall title. Hermann’s second slide wasn’t great, but it was enough to edge Deas for the race’s victory, and Bos for the overall title.
Hermann’s race victory was by .05 over Deas, who set the quick downtime of the final heat, with Meylemans winning her third career medal with a bronze.
Bos put down the second quickest downtime of the final heat to move up from eighth to fourth, ahead of Germany’s Susanne Kreher and Canada’s Rahneva, who rounded out the top six.
Crowley’s second run dropped her from third to eighth, one spot ahead of Canada’s Jane Channell in ninth. Kelly Curtis was the lone American in the field and struggled to find her rhythm on the Latvian track and finished 17th.
Hermann’s margin of victory in the overall points battle was 60 points ahead of defending World Cup champion Kimberley Bos. Canada’s Mimi Rahneva finished the season in third overall, ahead of Germany’s Susanne Kreher and Hannah Neise. USA’s Kelly Curtis finished the year in sixth.
Results:
| Pos | Name | Nation | Bib | Start 1 | Start 2 | Run 1 | Run 2 | Total |
| 1 | Tina Hermann | GER | 8 | 5.29 | 5.32 | 51.49 | 52.16 | 1:43.65 |
| 2 | Laura Deas | GBR | 10 | 5.03 | 5.00 | 51.91 | 51.79 | 1:43.70 |
| 3 | Kim Meylemans | BEL | 17 | 5.13 | 5.11 | 51.92 | 51.96 | 1:43.88 |
| 4 | Kimberley Bos | NED | 6 | 5.10 | 5.08 | 52.04 | 51.94 | 1:43.98 |
| 5 | Susanne Kreher | GER | 12 | 5.11 | 5.08 | 51.98 | 52.03 | 1:44.01 |
| 6 | Mirela Rahneva | CAN | 5 | 5.18 | 5.20 | 51.66 | 52.37 | 1:44.03 |
| 7 | Hannah Neise | GER | 7 | 5.31 | 5.29 | 52.05 | 52.08 | 1:44.13 |
| 8 | Brogan Crowley | GBR | 4 | 5.08 | 5.08 | 51.77 | 52.45 | 1:44.22 |
| 9 | Jane Channell | CAN | 13 | 4.97 | 5.04 | 51.93 | 52.40 | 1:44.33 |
| 10 | Anna Fernstädt | CZE | 11 | 5.35 | 5.39 | 52.25 | 52.21 | 1:44.46 |
| 11 | Valentina Margaglio | ITA | 16 | 4.88 | 4.91 | 52.39 | 52.28 | 1:44.67 |
| 12 | Nicole Silveira | BRA | 15 | 5.17 | 5.15 | 52.27 | 52.51 | 1:44.78 |
| 13 | Alessandra Fumagalli | ITA | 2 | 5.04 | 5.09 | 53.05 | 52.11 | 1:45.16 |
| 14 | Dan Zhao | CHN | 14 | 5.12 | 5.22 | 52.42 | 52.84 | 1:45.26 |
| 15 | Yuxi Li | CHN | 1 | 5.28 | 5.27 | 52.74 | 52.52 | 1:45.26 |
| 16 | Kellie Delka | PUR | 3 | 5.28 | 5.34 | 52.78 | 52.64 | 1:45.42 |
| 17 | Kelly Curtis | USA | 9 | 5.15 | 5.19 | 52.85 | 52.72 | 1:45.57 |
