From Durham, USA
(January 17, 2022) – The IBSF World Cup finished its season on Sunday, January 16 with just a few weeks to go before the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. Below are the top ten in points for each World Cup discipline. Monobob held its own “World Series” independent of the World Cup.
Men’s Skeleton
Martins Dukurs added another title to his long list of accomplishments, as he won his 11th IBSF World Cup overall title. This time he had to hold off Germany’s Axel Jungk and Christopher Grotheer, both of whom had a shot at unseating the Latvian. Dukurs left no doubt though, winning three of the final four races of the season to win the title.
Jungk finished the season in second, only four points ahead of Grotheer in third.
Russia’s Nikita Tregubov and Vladislav Semenov finished the year in fourth and fifth, while Germany’s Alexander Gassner rounded out the top six.
South Korea’s Seunggi Jung was the top junior in ninth place, while Austin Florian was the top North American in 23rd.
| Pos | Name | Nation | Starts | Best Finish | Worst Finish | Points |
| 1 | Martins Dukurs | LAT | 8 | 1 (3x – Alt, Win, StM) | 11 (Igls) | 1623 |
| 2 | Axel Jungk | GER | 8 | 1 (Altenberg) | 12 (Sigulda) | 1551 |
| 3 | Christopher Grotheer | GER | 8 | 1 (Igls) | 9 (Winterberg) | 1547 |
| 4 | Nikita Tregubov | RUS | 8 | 4 (St. Moritz) | 10 (Igls) | 1384 |
| 5 | Vladislav Semenov | RUS | 8 | 4 (Altenberg) | 13 (Winterberg) | 1320 |
| 6 | Alexander Gassner | GER | 8 | 2 (St. Moritz) | 21 (Igls) | 1312 |
| 7 | Alexander Tretiakov | RUS | 7 | 1 (2x – Igl, Win) | 9 (2x – Igl, Alt) | 1306 |
| 8 | Tomass Dukurs | LAT | 8 | 1 (Sigulda) | 18 (Igls) | 1249 |
| 9 | Seunggi Jung (J) | KOR | 8 | 4 (Igls) | 22 (Altenberg) | 1104 |
| 10 | Matt Weston | GBR | 7 | 1 (Igls) | 13 (Igls) | 1073 |
Women’s Skeleton
The Netherlands won their first ever IBSF World Cup title on the back of Kimberley Bos’ greatest season ever. The Dutch slider was on the podium more times than not, winning the first ever World Cup skeleton gold for the Netherlands on her way to a two gold, six podium season.
Austria’s Janine Flock, the 2020/2021 World Cup champion, rallied late in the season to make a game of it, but Bos’ silver medal in St. Moritz wrapped up the title in style.
Flock finished the season in second overall, 23 points ahead of Russia’s Elena Nikitina in third.
Germany was kept out of the top three overall, with Tina Hermann finishing the season in fourth place. Russia’s Yulia Kanakina won a silver medal on her way to a fifth place overall finish.
Italy’s Valentina Margaglio finished the season in sixth, though a crash in Altenberg stood between her and a likely top four finish.
Alina Tararychenkova was the top finishing junior in seventh, while Mimi Rahneva was the top North American in eighth.
| Pos | Name | Nation | Starts | Best Finish | Worst Finish | Points |
| 1 | Kimberley Bos | NED | 8 | 1 (2x – Win x2) | 10 (Altenberg) | 1600 |
| 2 | Janine Flock | AUT | 8 | 1 (Sigulda) | 8 (Winterberg) | 1481 |
| 3 | Elena Nikitina | RUS | 8 | 1 (2x – Igl x2) | 11 (2x – Alt, StM) | 1458 |
| 4 | Tina Hermann | GER | 8 | 1 (2x – Alt x2) | 12 (Igls) | 1436 |
| 5 | Yulia Kanakina | RUS | 8 | 2 (Sigulda) | 16 (St. Moritz) | 1290 |
| 6 | Valentina Margaglio | ITA | 8 | 2 (Altenberg) | DNF (Altenberg) | 1274 |
| 7 | Alina Tararychenkova (J) | RUS | 8 | 2 (Altenberg) | 18 (Winterberg) | 1202 |
| 8 | Mirela Rahneva | CAN | 8 | 3 (2x – Win, StM) | 18 (Altenberg) | 1168 |
| 9 | Hanna Neise (J) | GER | 8 | 4 (Altenberg) | 18 (Igls) | 1104 |
| 10 | Jacqueline Lölling | GER | 8 | 2 (Winterberg) | 21 (Igls) | 1088 |
Two-Woman Bobsled
The United States’ Elana Meyers Taylor won her second World Cup title in two-woman bobsled, eight years and one child after her first.
Meyers Taylor won gold in Sigulda, and finished outside of the top six exactly once on her way to a 19 point victory over Germany’s Laura Nolte.
Nolte, the top-finishing junior on tour, skipped the race in Sigulda, and that loss of points is what stood between her and the overall title. She edged out teammate Kim Kalicki by 14 points after Kalicki also sat out Sigulda.
Canada’s Christine de Bruin finished the season in fourth, ahead of the United States’ Kaillie Humphries, while Germany’s Mariama Jamanka finished the year in sixth.
| Pos | Name | Nation | Starts | Best Finish | Worst Finish | Points |
| 1 | Elana Meyers Taylor | USA | 8 | 1 (Sigulda) | 7 (Igls) | 1505 |
| 2 | Laura Nolte (J) | GER | 7 | 1 (4x – Igl x2, Win x2) | 6 (Altenberg) | 1486 |
| 3 | Kim Kalicki (J) | GER | 7 | 1 (2x – Alt, StM) | 4 (Altenberg) | 1472 |
| 4 | Christine de Bruin | CAN | 8 | 3 (4x – Igl x2, Alt, Sig) | 16 (Altenberg) | 1448 |
| 5 | Kaillie Humphries | USA | 7 | 1 (Altenberg) | 10 (Igls) | 1337 |
| 6 | Mariama Jamanka | GER | 7 | 2 (3x – Win, Alt, StM) | 10 (Altenberg) | 1310 |
| 7 | Nadezhda Sergeeva | RUS | 8 | 6 (Altenberg) | 15 (Sigulda) | 1200 |
| 8 | Qing Ying (J) | CHN | 8 | 6 (Sigulda) | 17 (2x – Win x2) | 984 |
| 9 | Anastasiia Makarova | RUS | 8 | 5 (2x – Alt, Sig) | 18 (2x – Igls x2) | 976 |
| 10 | Andreea Grecu | ROU | 8 | 7 (2x – Alt, Sig) | 20 (Winterberg) | 972 |
Two-Man Bobsled
Francesco Friedrich once again dominated the IBSF World Cup tour. The German won seven of eight races on his way to a 173 point victory over Canada’s Justin Kripps. Friedrich’s only two-man loss, a 12th place finish in Sigulda, came after coming out of the start grooves and hitting the wall at the start in both of his runs.
Kripps finished the season in second, nearly matched by Russia’s Rostislav Gaitiukevich. While Gaitiukevich did win the only race Friedrich did not, he couldn’t match the consistency over Kripps’ full season.
Germany’s Lochner finished fourth, ahead of Great Britain’s Brad Hall in fifth. Germany’s Christoph Hafer finished the year in sixth.
Switzerland’s Michael Vogt was the top junior in seventh.
| Pos | Name | Nation | Starts | Best Finish | Worst Finish | Points |
| 1 | Francesco Friedrich | GER | 8 | 1 (7x – Igls x2, Alt x2, Sig, Win, StM) | 12 (Sigulda) | 1703 |
| 2 | Justin Kripps | CAN | 8 | 2 (St. Moritz) | 8 (Sigulda) | 1530 |
| 3 | Rostislav Gaitiukevich | RUS | 8 | 1 (Sigulda) | 7 (Sigulda) | 1521 |
| 4 | Johannes Lochner | GER | 8 | 2 (4x – Igls x2, Alt, Win) | 10 (Altenberg) | 1512 |
| 5 | Brad Hall | GBR | 8 | 2 (2x – Sig x2) | 11 (Altenberg) | 1444 |
| 6 | Christoph Hafer | GER | 8 | 2 (Altenberg) | 15 (Igls) | 1306 |
| 7 | Michael Vogt (J) | SUI | 8 | 8 (Igls) | 13 (2x – Sigulda) | 1168 |
| 8 | Oskars Kibermanis | LAT | 8 | 3 (Sigulda) | 18 (Altenberg) | 1120 |
| 9 | Simon Friedli | SUI | 7 | 5 (3x – Alt, Sig x2) | 18 (Igls) | 1104 |
| 10 | Romain Heinrich | FRA) | 8 | 7 (Sigulda) | 17 (Igls) | 1088 |
Four-Man Bobsled
Like in two-man bobsled, Francesco Friedrich dominated the four-man bobsled tour. Friedrich won the first seven races of the season, only to be edged out by Oskars Kibermanis of Latvia in the season finale in St. Moritz.
Kripps and Gaitiukevich once again finished second and third overall, though the points differential was a little more spread out, while Brad Hall finished the year in fourth on the strength of a trio of silver medals.
Lochner finished the year in fifth after a 21st place finish in Altenberg set him back, while Kibermanis’ gold solidified his sixth place overall finish.
Vogt was once again the top junior in seventh.
| Pos | Name | Nation | Starts | Best Finish | Worst Finish | Points |
| 1 | Francesco Friedrich | GER | 8 | 1 (7x – Igls x2, Alt x2, Win x3) | 2 (St. Moritz | 1785 |
| 2 | Justin Kripps | CAN | 8 | 2 (Altenberg) | 6 (Igls) | 1530 |
| 3 | Rostislav Gaitiukevich | GER | 8 | 3 (3x – Alt x2, StM) | 7 (3x – Igl, Win x2) | 1480 |
| 4 | Brad Hall | GBR | 8 | 2 (3x – Igl, Win x2) | 11 (Igls) | 1430 |
| 5 | Johannes Lochner | GER | 8 | 2 (2x – Igl, Win) | 21 (Altenberg) | 1402 |
| 6 | Oskars Kibermanis | LAT | 8 | 1 (St. Moritz) | 11 (Winterberg) | 1395 |
| 7 | Michael Vogt (J) | SUI | 8 | 6 (2x – Alt x2) | 18 (Winterberg) | 1216 |
| 8 | Benjamin Maier | AUT | 6 | 2 (Altenberg) | 6 (Winterberg) | 1154 |
| 9 | Maxim Andrianov | RUS | 8 | 6 (Winterberg) | 17 (Winterberg) | 1128 |
| 10 | Hunter Church (J) | USA | 8 | 3 (Winterberg) | 21 (Altenberg) | 1126 |
