Canadian lugers win World Cup silver in team relay
Canada's luge squad continues to find success in the team relay event.
Kimberley McRae, Mitchel Malyk and doubles duo Tristan Walker and Justin Snith combined to win silver at a World Cup event on Sunday in Altenberg, Germany.
The host Germans took gold in a combined time of two minutes, 24.204 seconds. The Canadian contingent was just 0.336 seconds behind, followed by Latvia, who were 0.778 off the Germans' pace.
"Winning the silver in the relay was unreal," McRae said in a release. "I am very proud of the boys and what we accomplished as a team. I put down a solid run and the second fastest start for the women. The boys picked up time on the way down.
"It was a fantastic feeling to be a part of the team, and helping Canada win that silver medal today."
The team relay event is a combination of women's and men's singles events, along with the doubles. The first two sliders hit a target at the end of their run,which signals the next sled at the top of the hill.
The Canadian team -- minus McRae and with Alex Gough -- captured bronze at the world championships last month in Konigsee, Germany.
Canada finished just out of the medals in the Olympic debut of the event -- settling for a fourth-place finish in Sochi, but has climbed the podium as a team at the last four world championships.
Geisenberger makes it official
Earlier in the day, Olympic champion Natalie Geisenberger finished fourth in the women's event to claim her fourth successive overall title, while German compatriot Tatjana Huefner clinched her first European title .
The second last race of the season doubled for the 47th luge European Championship in Altenberg, Germany, and Huefner claimed the title by speeding down the track in 53.359 and then 53.020 seconds, edging Eliza Cauce of Latvia by 0.211.
Tatiana Ivanova of Russia was third, 0.313 back, ahead of Geisenberger, who was 0.406 behind with a combined time of 1:46.785.
McRae of Canada was fifth in 1:46.886, a season-best result for the Victoria native.
"Today goes to show hard work can pay off. From pulling 15th-place starts for many of the races this year, I was able to put together top start times in the women's race," McRae said. "I hope to continue building on what I learned this week.
"I know the competition is fierce this year, but I am going to keep putting the work in. That is the first step."
Arianne Jones, also of Calgary, was 14th in 1:47.524.
