German luger Julia Taubitz has secured Olympic gold in the women's singles at the Winter Games in Cortina d’Ampezzo. She overcame her disappointment from Beijing 2022 and completed her collection of titles. With strong runs, she pulled ahead of the competition.
Julia Taubitz from WSC Oberwiesenthal has secured her greatest sporting achievement. The 29-year-old let out a cheer of joy after the race and was hugged by her teammates. Four years ago in Beijing 2022, she suffered a crash in the second run as the top favorite and finished seventh. Now she celebrated the Olympic victory like Max Langenhan in the men's singles.
In the competition, Taubitz started with bib number 1 and set a track record in the first run. “I find the track very well-designed and very feelable. The rhythm of the curves is beautiful; you can dance down with the sled wonderfully,” she said. Merle Fräbel beat this record shortly after, but Taubitz countered in the second run and led at the halfway point. In the third run, Fräbel made heavy errors, including a barrier touch, and dropped to eighth place. Taubitz followed safely in the fourth run and won with a lead. Silver went to Elina Bota from Latvia, almost one second behind, and bronze to Ashley Farquharson from the USA. Anna Berreiter from Berchtesgaden finished sixth.
With the gold, Taubitz completes her collection: eight world championship titles, European gold, and five overall World Cup wins. “I set my sporting goals at a very young age. They consisted of the overall World Cup win, the world championship title, and the Olympic victory,” explained the athlete from the Ore Mountains. The German gold streak in women's singles has held since 1998 with wins by Silke Kraushaar-Pielach, Sylke Otto, Tatjana Hüfner, and Natalie Geisenberger.
Taubitz processed the Beijing crash: “It took me a long time to process this setback. In retrospect, I am grateful for this experience.” At the finish, around 80 fans from Germany celebrated with her, having arrived by bus, along with her mother Simone, sprinter Gina Lückenkemper, and model Lena Gercke. Speeds in the newly built ice channel reached almost 120 km/h. Taubitz, who describes herself as an adrenaline junkie, plans to try motorbike racing soon and enjoys surfing in France with her RV.
