2012/2013 FIBT World Cup – Round 6 – Two Man Bobsled

From Altenberg, Germany

For the first time this season Germany has managed to dominate a race, sweeping the podium in Altenberg.  Local sliders Francisco Friedrich and Thomas Florschuetz were both the class of the field, and both are rewarded with gold medals.  Florschuetz was .04 faster in Heat 1, but Friedrich was .04 quicker in Heat 2, leading to a tie for gold.  Manuel Machata put down a seemingly perfect run to slip past Canadian Lyndon Rush to take the final spot on the podium. Rush would have to settle for fourth.

Latvia’s Oskars Melbardis seemed to have the best ice conditions out of the field, and gained a half-second on his first run.  That, combined with some slightly bumpy runs from Italy, Great Britain and others led to Melbardis going from ninth to fifth with a second heat run over a half second quicker than his first attempt.

Some questionable ice conditions combined with a bumpy run down left Britain’s John Jackson 11th, from a tie for fifth after Heat 1.

The United States, Russia, Switzerland and others had sleds in St. Moritz this weekend, training for World Championships later this year, leading to a smaller 18 sled field.

Results: