Ray Brook native Sophia Kirkby and doubles partner Chevonne Forgan of Chelmsford, Massachusetts won gold in the women’s doubles event, while Emily Sweeney of Lake Placid took silver in the women’s singles on Saturday.

The following day, USA Luge added to its collection of medals in the first-ever mixed event with the singles team of Sweeney and Jonny Gustafson earning silver, while doubles teams of Forgan and Kirkby, and Marcus Mueller and Ansel Haugsjaa took bronze.

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Women’s doubles

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Forgan and Kirkby took their first World Cup victory in 1 minute, 34.929 seconds. Their first heat time of 47.406 established the track record.

“We’re so excited,” said Forgan, who won bronze with Kirkby at the 2024 World Championships in January. “We just put (down) two solid, consistent runs and we’re just so happy.”

“We’re very happy with our performance,” Kirkby said. “On our first run, we got a track record, which means of all the runs that have ever happened here in women’s doubles, we pulled the fastest run ever.”

It was also a bittersweet moment for Kirkby, whose father died in June. He bobsledded with the Air Force during the 1970s, and was one of the biggest reasons why she became a slider.

“This brings me tears of joy and a little bit of sadness,” she said. “He would have been so happy to see this.”

Germans Jessica Degenhardt and Cheyenne Rosenthal were second in 1:34.946, while Marta Robezniece and Kitija Bogdanova of Latvia were third in 1:35.419.

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Women’s singles

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Sweeney posted a record-setting second heat time of 46.867, which was enough to propel her from fourth place after the first heat to the silver medal position in the women’s singles competition. She recored a two-run of 1:33.990.

“Sophia and Chevonne have a first (place), I have a second (place), so we’re just keeping it going,” Sweeney said. “It’s just fun to be racing again. The preseason was long, and this is a good way to kick it off. My parents are here, I got a track record, so what could be better? Well, (placing) first actually, but we’ll work on that.”

Julia Taubitz of Germany was the winner in 1:33.898, while Austrian Lisa Schulte placed third in 1:34.050. Three-time Olympian Summer Britcher of Glen Rock, Pennsylvania, who won the 2018 edition of the Lillehammer race, was sixth in 1:34.321. 2022 Olympian Ashley Farquharson of Park City, Utah was eighth in 1:34.350, while Emma Erickson of Park City, Utah placed 29th with a one-run time of 51.607. Only the top 20 advance to the second heat.

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Men’s doubles

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Marcus Mueller of Brookfield, Wisconsin and Ansel Haugsjaa of Framingham, Massachusetts posted the fastest second heat run. However a crash on the first run pushed the reigning Junior World Champions, into 18th in 1:40.431.

In the first heat, Zack DiGregorio of Medway, Massachusetts and Sean Hollander of Lake Placid, sat in fifth place, just .011 from the podium. But the 2022 Olympians were bit by the exit of curve 13 on their second run, clocking in at 1:34.635 in 10th place.

Dana Kellogg of Chesterfield, Massachusetts and Frank Ike of Lititz, Pennsylvania placed eighth, their fourth top 10 finish in their second season together. They made minor mistakes out of curve 13 in both heats. They finished eighth in 1:34.419.

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Mixed singles

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The United States entered two teams, which consist of two sleds — a man and a woman or a men’s doubles sled and a women’s doubles sled — in the mixed singles event.

In the singles sled competition, the male athlete takes his run like a normal trip down the track, but instead of the clock stopping at the traditional finish line, he strikes a pad hanging over the track, which opens the gate for the female athlete. The clock stops when she strikes the pad at the bottom of the track. Doubles follow the same format.

Gustafson began the heat for USA 1 from the men’s start, which is situated a few curves above the women’s start. His run was solid, but not as good as his runs earlier in the day in the men’s race. He hit the pad with a deficit of nearly half a second to the leader. Sweeney responded with the fastest reaction time of the race and closed the gap to just over a quarter of a second behind the winners. Their silver medal time was one minute 45.692 seconds.

“Emily put the backpack on for this race and I just hopped in there,” Gustafson told the International Luge Federation. “She carried us to second place, and it was awesome.”

The other U.S. team included Britcher and Tucker West, and they placed 10th in 1:46.112.

The mixed event is like the relay event but features fewer sleds and utilizes the traditional starting points for men, women, and doubles. Nations who do not have enough athletes to field a team are allowed to join for the mixed event, while larger nations can field up to two sleds.

Germany entered two teams in the competition. The top Germany team of Max Langenhan and Julia Taubitz won gold in 1:45.429, while Germany’s second team, featuring Felix Loch and Merle Fraebel, won bronze in 1:45.741.

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Mixed doubles

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The United States team of Mueller and Haugsjaa hit the pad and opened the gates for Forgan and Kirkby. The duo had the fastest reaction time of the race and stopped the clock in 1:44.684, securing the bronze medal.

The second Germany team featured Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt, and Dajana Eitberger and Magdalena Matschina, who took advantage of an early start number under deteriorating conditions. Their time of 1:44.148 won the race. The top Latvia team, with Martins Bots and Roberts Plume, and Marta Robezniece and Kitija Bogdanova, placed second in 1:44.604.

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Men’s singles

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Gustafson tied his best-ever World Cup result, placing fifth in 1:37.627. His previous fifth place result was posted in Lake Placid last season. Tucker West of Lake Placid set a start record by nearly one tenth of a second. On his second run, a mistake at the start cost him and he finished 12th in 1:38.259. West also holds start records in Lake Placid and Pyeongchang, South Korea.

Two-time Junior World Championship medalist Matt Greiner of Park City, Utah placed 21st, just missing the cut to take a second run, in 50.177. Junior National Team athlete Aidan Mueller of West Islip placed 28th in 50.838. Mueller qualified to race on the National Team at the Norton National Championships held last month in Park City.

Langenhan won the race in 1:37.338, followed by Wolfgang Kindl of Austria in 1:37.365, and Loch in 1:37.522.

World Cup action is set to continue this weekend in Innsbruck-Igls, Austria. The competition will be held on Dec. 7 and 8, with the World Championships being held Feb. 6-8, 2025, in Whistler, British Columbia.