Eggert, Benecken set track record, win luge WCup doubles

Published Jan. 14, 2017 6:49 a.m. ET

SIGULDA, Latvia (AP) Toni Eggert and Sascha Benecken set a track record on both runs to win a luge World Cup doubles race Saturday and take a big step toward the overall title.

The Germans won in a combined time of 1 minute, 23.113 seconds.

Oskars Gudramovics and Peteris Kalnins of Latvia were second, 0.363 off the lead on their home track, with Italians Ludwig Rieder and Patrick Rastner 0.695 off the pace in third.

Eggert and Benecken's sixth win from eight races this season extended their overall lead to 152 points over World Cup holders Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt of Germany, who were 10th on Saturday.

Robin Johannes Geueke and David Gamm remained third in the standings despite failing to finish.

There was a German 1-2 in the women's singles as Natalie Geisenberger took her third win of the season, winning in 1:23.485 over two runs, 0.028 ahead of veteran Tatjana Huefner. Geisenberger extended her standings lead to 27 points over Huefner.

Tatyana Ivanova led after setting a track record on her first run and held the lead for much of her second run, only to tap the wall near the bottom of the track. That forced the Russian to settle for third, 0.131 behind Geisenberger.

Canada's Alex Gough had come to Sigulda third in the standings but dropped behind Erin Hamlin of the United States after two poor runs left Gough 13th in Saturday's race.