Kaillie Humphries wins final in Innsbruck ahead of Elana Meyers Taylor, Beierl third
Innsbruck (RWH) The 2020/2021 BMW IBSF World Cup has come to an end in Innsbruck (AUT) with a result for the sporting history books. In the last of the season's eight races in 2-woman bobsleigh, Katrin Beierl became the first Austrian ever to secure the overall World Cup victory in the discipline. In the final, Beierl came in third with push athlete Jennifer Onasanya.
The 2010 and 2014 Olympic champion Kaillie Humphries (USA) and her push athlete Lolo Jones took the victory in Innsbruck. For Jones, it was the first victory since January 2018 - when she won with pilot Elana Meyers Taylor (USA) in St. Moritz. Meyers Taylor was now also on the podium in Innsbruck: With Lake Kwaza she finished second 0.04 seconds behind her teammates Humphries/Jones.
With a gap of 0.06 seconds to the winners from the USA, Katrin Beierl/Jennifer Onasanya on their home track in Innsbruck celebrated their third podium finish of the winter and their first overall victory.
Fourth place and her best World Cup result as a pilot was achieved in Innsbruck by Cynthia Appiah with Dawn Richardson Wilson (CAN). The Canadians, who were the fastest in both runs at the start, were 0.02 seconds off the podium in only their second World Cup race.
Lisa Buckwitz (GER), 2018 Olympic Champion as Mariama Jamanka's push athlete, made her first World Cup appearance as a bobsleigh pilot in Innsbruck. Pushed by Cynthia Kwofie, the 26-year-old finished seventh in her World Cup debut. A week earlier, Buckwitz/Kwofie took silver at the 2021 IBSF Junior World Championships in St. Moritz (SUI).
In the overall ranking for the BMW IBSF World Cup 2020/2021, Katrin Beierl (AUT) collected 1506 points in the eight races of the season for the victory. Second place was defended by the 2020 World Championships silver medallist Kim Kalicki (GER, 1431). Kalicki finished sixth in Innsbruck, missing the podium for the first time in nine World Cup races. Olympic Champion Mariama Jamanka (GER, 1363), who came in eighth in Innsbruck, finished third overall.
For more detailed information including athlete profiles and World Cup results please visit ibsf.org. Photos for editorial use can be found at Flickr. ©RWH2021
Photos: IBSF / Viesturs Lacis
