Golden start for Kaillie Humphries, Melissa Lotholz at bobsleigh World Cup
CBC Sports | Posted: November 9, 2017 8:37 PM | Last Updated: November 9, 2017
Canadians reach top of the podium in season-opening race in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Kaillie Humphries and brakeman Melissa Lotholz opened their women's bobsleigh World Cup season with a narrow victory in Lake Placid, N.Y., on Thursday.
Humphries led after the first run with a time of 56.96 seconds and finished with a total time of one minute, 54.40 seconds, just 0.03 in front of the American sled of Elana Meyers Taylor and Lauren Gibbs.
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"To beat the Americans on any track is difficult," Humphries said.
Humphries' two-run time was 1 minute, 54.40 seconds. Germany got the bronze, with Stephanie Schneider and Lisa Marie Buchwitz finishing in 1:54.60 and nipping Jamie Greubel Poser and Aja Evans of the U.S. by 0.01 seconds.
"I love this track just as much as anybody," said Humphries, whose hair was dyed in the colours of the South Korean flag in a nod to the upcoming PyeongChang Olympics. "I've been driving it for numerous years and I'm really happy to do it justice today."
Canada posted three top-10 finishes as Christine De Bruin and Cynthia Appiah finished in sixth place and Alysia Rissling and Kristen Bujnowski were seventh.
It was the 13th time that Humphries and Meyers Taylor finished first and second in a World Cup, world championship or Olympic competition. Humphries now has won seven of those, Meyers Taylor six.
"She had a good day. I didn't have a great day. That's kind of how it goes," Meyers Taylor said. "I don't expect this to be the trend, though."