Meanwhile, Jonny Gustafson was the top U.S. finisher in the men’s singles race, placing 20th.

The women’s doubles team of Chevonne Forgan and Sophia Kirkby placed seventh after breaking the start record they set last season. In men’s doubles, Marcus Mueller and Ansel Haugsjaa placed ninth.

The United States placed fourth in the team relay event, closing out a weekend of racing in Winterberg. Team USA stood on the verge of a medal-winning finish, but a mistake in the most difficult section of the course cost them the podium.

–

Women’s singles

–

Two-time Olympian Sweeney sat in fifth place after the first heat of competition. With the strength of her second heat and the misfortune of a teammate, Sweeney moved up two spots to finish third in 1 minute, 49.922 seconds.

“This week was really tough in training,” said Sweeney, who won bronze here at the 2019 World Championships. “The track crew has done an incredible job with the track, but it’s a different track than normal. I really struggled to find a clean line but I’m happy with a third for sure.”

Sweeney will skip the next race in Oberhof, Germany, next week to prepare for the World Championships in Whistler, Canada, being held Feb. 6 to 8.

After the first heat, 2022 Olympian Ashley Farquharson sat in third place, poised to take her first career World Cup medal in women’s singles. But a mistake at the start dropped her back to 15th place in 1:51.042.

Three-time Olympian Summer Britcher of Glen Rock, Pennsylvania with two consistent runs, placed eighth in 1:50.373.

Emma Erickson of Park City, Utah was 23rd with a one run time of 55.743. Only the top 20 advance to the second heat.

The race was won by Julia Taubitz of Germany in 1:49.582, with Madeleine Egle of Austria second in 1:49.780.

–

Men’s singles

–

Gustafson, of Massena, was the top finishing U.S. athlete in 20th place with a time of 1:43.857 after a challenging race. His teammate, three-time Olympian Tucker West of Lake Placid also struggled to find pace, finishing in 21st in 51.639. Only the top 20 athletes advance to take a second run. Aidan Mueller of West Islip, a member of the Junior National Team competing in the World Cup, was 26th in 52.045.

In yet another show of strength for the Austrian program, Jonas Mueller won the race and set a track record with a time of 1:41.742. Max Langenhan of Germany was second in 1:41.797 and Nico Gleirscher of Austria was third with a two-run combined time of 1:41.843.

–

Women’s doubles

–

Two-time World Championship medalists Forgan, of Chelmsford, Massachusetts, and Kirkby, of Lake Placid, had the fastest start time of both heats today, but slowly lost time throughout their two runs. They also had skids in each heat entering curve 14. The duo missed the podium for only the second time in the six races held this season. Their seventh-place time was 1:27.110.

In their third World Cup race together, Maya Chan of Chicago, Illinois and Sophia Gordon of Sussex, Wisconsin placed eighth in 1:27.456. This was their second consecutive eighth-place result.

Selina Egle and Lara Kipp of Austria won for the fifth time in a row, finishing in 1:26.467. Germany’s Jessica Degenhardt and Cheyenne Rosenthal were second in 1:26.481. For the first time this season, the reigning World Cup champions, Andrea Voetter and Marion Oberhofer of Italy, stood on the podium. Their third-place time was 1:26.688.

–

Men’s doubles

–

Marcus Mueller, of Brookfield, Wisconsin, and Haugsjaa, of Framingham, Massachusetts, the reigning Junior World Champions, were the top finishing U.S. sled in ninth place. The duo crossed the finish line in 1:25.582.

Their teammates and 2022 Olympians Zack DiGregorio of Medway, Massachusetts and Sean Hollander of Lake Placid were 17th with a one run time of 43.840. Only the top 16 sleds advance to the second heat.

Germany’s Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt became the most successful sled in men’s doubles history, with 55 career World Cup victories. Their time was 1:25.152. Austrians Juri Gatt and Riccardo Schoepf finished second in 1:25.286, with their teammates Yannick Mueller and Armin Frauscher third in 1:25.354.

–

Team relay

–

Sweeney kicked things off for Team USA by posting the fastest time in the discipline. She hit the touch pad at the bottom of the track and opened the gate for Marcus Mueller and Haugsjaa who had the team in the bronze medal position until they flipped the sled off the final curve. In an impressive feat, the duo turned the sled back on its runners in time to strike the pad and open the gate Gustafson. He, and the women’s doubles team of Forgan and Kirkby, kept the team in the top four. Their time was 3:12.632.

In an upset on home ice, the Austrian squad won in 3:11.428 over the Germans, who posted a silver medal winning time of 3:11.519. Team Italy finished third in 3:12.008.

–

World Cup standings

–

Sweeney is sixth in the women’s World Cup standings with 293 points, despite missing one event. Farquharson is ninth with 249 points and Britcher holds 11th with 240. Erickson is 20th with 115 points in her first year on the World Cup tour.

Egle leads with 444 points. Taubitz is second with 430 and Austrian Lisa Schulte is third with 415.

In men’s singles, Gustafson is 11th with 187 points, West 15th with 162 and Aidan Mueller 27th with 75 points. Matt Greiner of Park City, Utah is injured and did not race Sunday. He holds 30th place with 52 points.

Langenhan and Gleirscher are tied for the lead with 456 points each. Felix Loch of Germany is third with 370.

On the doubles side, Forgan and Kirkby remain in third place with 426 points in women’s competition. Chan and Gordon, in a truncated season, are 12th with 123 points. Egle and Kipp lead with 550 points, Degenhardt and Rosenthal are second with 475 points.

In men’s doubles, Mueller and Haugsjaa are ninth with 239 points. DiGregorio and Hollander are 11th with 211 points.

Wendl and Arlt hold the lead with 475 points, in front of Latvians Martins Bots and Roberts Plume with 466 points. Toni Eggert and Florian Mueller of Germany are third with 396 points.

The United States sits in sixth place in the overall World Cup relay standings with 185 points. Germany leads with 355 points, 10 more than Austria with 245. Latvia is third with 215 points.