02/12/26 12:38:00
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02/12 12:37 CST Another Olympic relay, another gold for Germany. The US
finishes 5th in luge's finale at 2026 Games
Another Olympic relay, another gold for Germany. The US finishes 5th in luge's
finale at 2026 Games
By TIM REYNOLDS
AP Sports Writer
CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) --- Germany, Austria, Italy. They were the three
best luge nations at the Milan Cortina Olympics, and very fittingly, they were
the three best teams in the team relay on Thursday night.
Germany is now 4-for-4 in the team event in the Olympic program, winning yet
another gold medal to end this year's luge slate at the Cortina track.
The team of women's singles gold medalist Julia Taubitz, men's singles gold
medalist Max Langenhan, women's doubles silver medalists Dajana Eitberger and
Magdalena Matschina, and men's doubles bronze medalists Tobias Wendl and Tobias
Arlt took the gold in 3 minutes, 41.672 seconds.
Wendl and Arlt are now seven-time Olympic gold medalists --- three in doubles,
four in relays.
Austria was second in 3:42.214 and host Italy was third in 3:42.521. Latvia was
fourth and the U.S. --- bronze medalist Ashley Farquharson, Jonny Gustafson,
Marcus Mueller and Ansel Haugsjaa in men's doubles and Chevonne Forgan and
Sophia Kirkby in women's singles --- was fifth.
Ukraine was sixth, and its six sliders all took a knee crossing the finish line
and held their helmets skyward in a tribute to skeleton racer Vladyslav
Heraskevych. He was disqualified from the Olympic race earlier Thursday over
his insistence to wear a helmet honoring some who have died in his country
since Russia invaded in 2022.
The team event consists of one run for all four sleds, and teams must slap a
pad that hangs from the top of the track as they cross the finish line to
either activate the starting gate for the next sled or stop the clock at the
end.
It made Taubitz and Langenhan the only double-gold winners in luge at this
year's Olympics, where Germany --- again --- was the overall best, with three
golds and five medals overall. Italy won four medals (two gold, two bronze), as
did Austria (three silver, one bronze).
Latvia won a silver, and the U.S. medal was Farquharson's bronze.
There are two races left in the World Cup season --- Feb. 28 and March 1 in St.
Moritz, Switzerland, and then March 7-8 in Altenberg, Germany. It's unclear how
many teams will be taking part in those races, though there are some World Cup
overall titles yet to be claimed. Most U.S. sleds are likely to head home for
the remainder of the season, though that may change.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
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