(L-R) Melissa Lotholz and Kaillie Humphries of Canada, Elana Meyers Taylor, Briauna Jones, Lauren Gibbs and Jamie Greubel Poser pose on the podium at the IBSF World Cup on Jan. 21, 2017 in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
Elana Meyers Taylor continued to scramble up the women’s bobsled world cup standings by winning Saturday’s race in St. Moritz, Switzerland, and Jamie Greubel Poser added her third bronze medal of the season to give Team USA its second multiple-medal performance in as many weeks.
Meyers Taylor and Briauna Jones defeated two-time Olympic champion Kaillie Humphries of Canada by the slimmest of margins, posting a track record of 1:07.73 on their second run for a total time of 2:16.14, also a track record. That edged out Humphries, the overall world cup leader, by a mere 0.01 seconds. Greubel Poser and Lauren Gibbs took third in 2:16.29.
It marked the fourth straight podium for Meyers Taylor after a crash in the season opener left her at the bottom of the world cup standings. Since then the reigning Olympic silver medalist has reeled off two silver medals in Lake Placid, New York, and Altenberg, Germany, before winning last week in Winterberg, Germany, and successfully defending her gold medal from last year’s St. Moritz contest. Flashing the form that led to six gold medals and the overall title in 2014-15, the two-time Olympian is now fourth in the standings with 870 points, 74 away from third. After winning in Lake Placid and adding her third bronze of the season today, 2014 Olympian Greubel Poser solidified her grip on second place with 1,009 points, 35 points behind Humphries.
With their third multiple-medal performance of the season, Team USA’s women equal a feat they had not achieved since the end of the 2014-15 season, when Greubel Poser took a silver and two bronzes and Meyers Taylor swept gold in the last three races on her way to her overall title.
Brittany Reinbolt and Lolo Jones finished 14th Saturday and Reinbolt moved up to ninth in the overall standings.
