From Yanqing, CHN
(November 17, 2023) – The final race of the IBSF World Cup’s opening day was also the closest race of the day, as Germany’s Tina Hermann edged out Dan Zhao for gold in the season opener for women’s skeleton.
Zhao led Hermann by .12 after the first heat, with Zhao having hung onto a lead that at one point had been nearly a half of a second. In third was Mimi Rahneva, only a quarter of a second back.
In the second heat Rahneva secured her first medal of the season with a consistent run that placed her .3 ahead of world champion Susanne Kreher. She wouldn’t move up, but the Canadian’s finish was enough to secure her sixth career World Cup bronze medal, and 14th World Cup medal overall.
Hermann went next. Her push was traditionally off the pace of the top push athletes, nearly .2 behind Rahneva’s. But her slide was what the world has come to expect with only a few very minor hiccups along the way on her way to the lead.
Finally it was Zhao’s turn. The Chinese slider had only two top ten finishes in her career and had a heartbreaking effort during her home Olympics where her third run dropped her well out of medal contention. Zhao was clean off the top and had nearly a half of a second advantage by Curve 4. A couple of small mistakes compounded, and as Zhao crossed the line she found herself in second place by just .02, handing the gold to Hermann.
Hermann’s victory was her 18th in World Cup competition, and her 38th medal overall. For Zhao, the silver medal was the first for China in women’s skeleton.
Despite winning gold, Hermann didn’t set the quick time of either heat. That honor went to Zhao and Kreher, with Kreher setting the fast time of the second heat on her way to a fourth place finish.
Belgium’s Kim Meylemans put down a great second run to move up from eighth to fifth, while Austria’s Janine Flock finished sixth.
Canada’s Jane Channell opened her season with a 12th place finish, while teammate Hallie Clarke ended the day in 15th place. Clarke was making her debut on the World Cup in Canadian colors after spending the prior season sliding for the United States.
Great Britain’s Amelia Coltman moved up from 14th to 13th as the lone Brit in the field.
Like the men, the American women sat out the event in Yanqing, instead focusing on the North American Cup races in Lake Placid. They will join the World Cup tour in three weeks time when it goes to La Plagne for the second round of the season.
Results:
| Pos | Name | Nation | Bib | Start 1 | Start 2 | Run 1 | Run 2 | Total |
| 1 | Tina Hermann | GER | 3 | 5.38 | 5.44 | 61.75 | 52.06 | 2:03.81 |
| 2 | Dan Zhao | CHN | 4 | 5.22 | 5.24 | 61.63 | 52.20 | 2:03.83 |
| 3 | Mirela Rahneva | CAN | 10 | 5.21 | 5.26 | 61.90 | 62.09 | 2:03.99 |
| 4 | Susanne Kreher | GER | 17 | 5.32 | 5.29 | 62.27 | 62.02 | 2:04.29 |
| 5 | Kim Meylemans | BEL | 16 | 5.26 | 5.17 | 62.39 | 62.13 | 2:04.52 |
| 6 | Janine Flock | AUT | 8 | 5.36 | 5.40 | 62.15 | 62.42 | 2:04.57 |
| 7 | Yuxi Li | CHN | 5 | 5.21 | 5.25 | 62.19 | 62.42 | 2:04.61 |
| 8 | Kimberley Bos | NED | 14 | 5.24 | 5.21 | 62.30 | 62.32 | 2:04.62 |
| 9 | Valentina Margaglio | ITA | 13 | 5.08 | 5.08 | 62.62 | 62.92 | 2:05.54 |
| 10 | Anna Fernstädt | CZE | 12 | 5.52 | 5.49 | 62.98 | 63.21 | 2:06.19 |
| 11 | Nicole Silveira | BRA | 15 | 5.38 | 5.42 | 62.71 | 64.23 | 2:06.94 |
| 12 | Jane Channell | CAN | 11 | 5.13 | 5.12 | 63.64 | 64.16 | 2:07.80 |
| 13 | Ameila Coltman | GBR | 1 | 5.30 | 5.32 | 64.38 | 63.64 | 2:08.02 |
| 14 | Alessia Crippa | ITA | 9 | 5.25 | 5.26 | 64.37 | 63.77 | 2:08.14 |
| 15 | Hallie Clarke | CAN | 7 | 5.25 | 5.32 | 65.48 | 62.72 | 2:08.20 |
| 16 | Ana Torres Quevedo | ESP | 6 | 5.81 | 5.97 | 66.80 | 68.12 | 2:14.92 |
| 17 | Clara Aznar | ESP | 2 | 5.50 | 5.53 | 69.73 | 68.86 | 2:18.59 |