The inaugural test race on the contentious redesigned sliding track for the upcoming Milan Cortina Olympics saw British skeleton world champion Matt Weston clinching victory on Friday. Weston outpaced Austrian European champion Samuel Maier by 0.15 seconds after completing two runs on the Eugenio Monti track in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. This event also marked the commencement of the skeleton World Cup for the Olympic season.
Yin Zheng of China secured the third spot, trailing by 0.18 seconds, and achieved the initial track record with a time of 56.79 seconds in the first run. German junior world champion Lukas Nydegger achieved his best World Cup performance in fourth place, narrowly missing the podium by 0.05 seconds. Austin Florian was the top American finisher in 10th place, while local Italian athlete Mattia Gaspari led the host nation in 17th place.
In the women’s competition, Jaqcueline Pfeifer celebrated her first World Cup victory in nearly five years, finishing 0.23 seconds ahead of her German teammate and Olympic champion Hannah Neise. Kim Meylemans of Belgium claimed the third spot, finishing 0.32 seconds behind Pfeifer.
A mixed team competition was set for later on Friday, followed by bobsled races over the weekend. Although the competitive section of the Cortina track is operational, the surrounding areas are still under construction, and no spectators were permitted at the test event.
The International Olympic Committee initially proposed moving the sliding events to Austria or Switzerland due to the closure of the Cortina track in 2008 because of escalating maintenance expenses. However, the Italian government proceeded with the reconstruction, investing 118 million euros ($136 million) to refurbish the venue. The Winter Olympics are scheduled to take place from February 6 to 22.