German luger Julia Taubitz has won gold in the singles event at the Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo. This victory overcomes her disappointment from Beijing 2022 and completes her collection of titles. With a track record and strong runs, she clearly prevailed.
Julia Taubitz from WSC Oberwiesenthal has secured her greatest sporting achievement by winning gold in the women's singles at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo. The 29-year-old let out a jubilant scream after the race and was hugged by her teammates. Four years ago in Beijing 2022, she had crashed in the second run as the top favorite and finished seventh.
Taubitz started with bib number 1 and set a track record in the first run. "I find the track very well done and very feelable. The rhythm of the curves is very nice, you can dance down with the sled wonderfully," she said. In the second run, she beat the best mark of her compatriot Merle Fräbel and led at halftime. In the third run, she drove safely while Fräbel dropped to eighth with errors. Silver went to Elina Bota from Latvia with nearly a second deficit, bronze to Ashley Farquharson from the USA. Anna Berreiter from Berchtesgaden finished sixth.
With this victory, Taubitz completes her collection after eight world championship titles, one 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 Ore Mountains native. She thus processed the setback from Beijing: "It took me a long time to process this setback. In retrospect, I am grateful for this experience."
Taubitz continued the German gold series in women's events, which has been ongoing since Silke Kraushaar-Pielach's win in 1998. She celebrated with her mother Simone and over 80 fans from the Ore Mountains. The new track at the Cortina Sliding Centre offered speeds of nearly 120 km/h.
