Yanqing World Cup 2024-25#
10 photos
YANQING, China—The United States relay squad, featuring Ashley Farquharson, the men’s doubles team of Zack DiGregorio/Sean Hollander, Tucker West and the women’s doubles team of Chevonne Forgan/ Sophia Kirkby, took bronze in the ninth and final race of the 2024-25 FIL World Cup.
Earlier in the day, the men’s singles and doubles competitions took place. DiGregorio/Hollander finished sixth, while West was 27th in men’s singles.
Like many others on the circuit this week, the U.S. squad was hit with stomach flu and missed training earlier in the week.
Team relay
In an event that rewards consistency, the four sleds representing the United States avoided major mistakes and clocked a time of 4 minutes, 13.535 seconds.
Quotes from Team USA
Ashley Farquharson (Park City, Utah), 2022 Olympian: “Super happy to have secured a medal in relay this weekend. Despite it being the last World Cup, I think we’re ready to carry the momentum into next year.”
Tucker West (Lake Placid, N.Y.), three-time Olympian: “This [race] capped probably a tough season for me, but it’s always fun to race with the team and be a part of the relay. It’s a good end to the season so looking to get to summer training and get stronger for next season.”
Sean Hollander (Lake Placid, N.Y.) 2022 Olympian: “It was also a long, tough season for us, so this is a good way to end it.”
Zack DiGregorio (Medway, Mass.) 2022 Olympian: “It’s a great way, going into an Olympic season, to up the motivation.”
Chevonne Forgan (Chelmsford, Mass.), two-time World Championship medalist: “I think it was a tough week for everyone, so [we’re] so happy to pull it together for the last run of the competitive season.”
Sophia Kirkby (Lake Placid, N.Y.) two-time World Championship medalist: “Thank you to this team. Thank you to our other team – our sponsors. Thank you to Norton, U.S. Venture, Dow, Karbon, White Castle and Team Worldwide.”
Team Austria won the race in 4:11.933, with Team Germany second in 4:12.098.
Men’s doubles
DiGregorio and Hollander finished sixth, their best result of the season. The duo made their Olympic debut here three years ago after winning a race-off to qualify for the team. Their two-run combined time was 1:59.497.
Six-time Olympic gold medalists Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt of Germany won the race in 1:58.143, ahead of Latvians Martins Bots and Roberts Plume in 1:58.301. Germany’s Toni Eggert and Florian Mueller were third in 1:58.908.
Men’s singles
In the first heat, West’s split times showed him among the top ten sleds, but his sled flipped over in curve 15. While he was able to finish the run, West did not break the top 20, and as a result, did not get a second run. His time was 1:01.279. Jonny Gustafson (Massena, N.Y.) was slated to race but was exposed to stomach flu and could not compete.
Germany’s Max Langenhan continued his winning ways with a time of 1:55.051. Austria’s Jonas Mueller was second in 1:55.583 and David Gleirscher was third in 1:55.633.
Final World Cup overall standings
In team relay, Austria earned 445 points, just enough to win the title over Germany with 440 points. Latvia was third with 275 points and the United States was fourth with 255.
DiGregorio/Hollander finished tenth with 341 points, Marcus Mueller (Brookfield, Wisc.) and Ansel Haugsjaa (Framingham, Mass.) were 11th with 281. Mueller and Haugsjaa are currently with the Junior National team and did not compete in the final two races of the National Team season. Dana Kellogg (Chesterfield, Mass.) and Frank Ike (Lititz, Pa.) have not raced since the season's second World Cup in Igls when Kellogg injured his shoulder. They finished 24th with 58 points.
For the sixth time in their career, Wendl/Arlt secured the overall men’s doubles World Cup trophy with 745 points. In second was Bots/Plume with 641, and Austria’s Thomas Steu and Wolfgang Kindl in third with 615 points.
West finished his season in 14th with 244 points, while Gustafson was 15th with 240. Aidan Mueller (West Islip, N.Y.) raced as a member of the National and Junior National Teams this season. He was 29th with 85 points. Matt Greiner (Park City, Utah), who delt with injury and raced a partial season, was 34th with 52 points. Hunter Harris (East Fairfield, Vt.) was at four events and finished 37th with 35 points.
With four wins this season, Langenhan took the overall men’s singles World Cup with 716 points, followed by Austria’s Nico Gleirscher with 613 points. In third was Germany’s Felix Loch with 547 points.
The focus now shifts to the Norton Youth and Junior National Championships, slated to take place March 7-8 and 13-14, respectively, at the Utah Olympic Park. The National Team plans to train in Lake Placid following the conclusion of the IBSF Bobsled and Skeleton World Championships next month.
