LUGE DOUBLES MEDALISTS AT THE 2022 WINTER OLYMPICS
GOLD: Tobias Wendl/Tobias Arlt, GER, 1:56.554
SILVER: Toni Eggert/Sascha Benecken, GER, 1:56.653
BRONZE: Thomas Steu/Lorenz Koller, AUS, 1:57.065
FULL EVENT REPLAY: DOUBLES RUNS 1 AND 2
The 'Two Tobis' – Tobias Wendl and partner Tobias Arlt – brought home a third consecutive Olympics doubles title on Wednesday, their fifth overall gold medal. They are the first athletes to win the event three times.
Following Johannes Ludwig's and Natalie Geisenberger's singles wins, Germany has now gone three-for-three in luge competitions at the 2022 Winter Olympics. The country may very well sweep the competition following Thursday's team relay, which will also feature the event's two-time defending gold medalists Wendl and Arlt.
On their way to victory, Wendl/Arlt set a track record during Run 1 with a time of 58.255 seconds. They finished the race in 1:56:554 after a dramatic second heat, which saw them go last.
Germans Eggert/Benecken were only 0.045 seconds from the top before Run 4. Ultimately, they failed to make up the difference, securing silver with a tight, penultimate performance.
In third: 2021 World Cup overall champions Steu/Koller of Austrria, who finished fourth at PyeongChang 2018. The duo was more than half a second from the lead.
It was a solid albeit humbling race for Latvian brothers Andris/Juris Sics, who finished fifth in their fifth and likely final Games. They missed the podium and were beaten by compatriots Martins Bots and Roberts Plume – a changing of the guard.
Following victories in men's and women's singles, Germany looks to sweep all four luge events at these Games by earning a third straight team relay gold on Thursday. Since that additional event debuted in 2014, it would mark the second time Germany has swept all four of the sport's events at a single Games.
In 11th place, American rookies Zach Di Gregorio and Sean Hollander – making their Olympic debuts at just 20 and 21 – did well, considering their new sled and lack of experience. But could the U.S. have ranked higher had eighth-place singles finisher Chris Mazdzer and partner Jayson Terdiman punched their ticket instead?
"That was probably the most fun run I've had in my entire career, that second run there," Zach said. "There wasn't any big thinking other than just getting down that hill."
"It was awesome to just go out there and really just slide, it was really just a moment for us," Sean added. "It was probably the least stressed we've ever been going into a race."
Luge concludes with the team relay on Thursday, February 10 at 8:30 a.m. ET. Watch the stream here.