Mirela Rahneva of Ottawa, Ontario won a World Cup women’s skeleton gold medal in Sigulda, Latvia on Friday. For Rahneva, it was her fifth career World Cup women’s skeleton gold medal and 15th World Cup women’s skeleton medal of her career.
Rahneva posted a time of 1:43.10. Kim Meylemans of Belgium won the silver medal with a time of 1:43.38. Hannah Neise of Germany won the bronze medal with a time of 1:43.41. Rahneva reached the podium by 39 one-hundredths of a second. Amelia Coltman of Great Britain finished in fourth place with a time of 1:43.49.
In the World Cup women’s moguls standings, Rahneva is in eighth place with 825 points. Kimberley Bos of the Netherlands, who finished in sixth place on Friday, is the World Cup women’s skeleton leader with 1186 points. This was Rahneva’s second World Cup women’s skeleton medal this season. She also won bronze in Yanqing, China on November 17. There are two more World Cup women’s skeleton races this season. They are in Altenberg, Germany on February 16, and Lake Placid, New York on March 21.
Rahneva’s four previous World Cup women’s skeleton gold medals came in St. Moritz. Switzerland on January 20, 2017, in St. Moritz on January 25, 2019, in Calgary, Alberta on February 22, 2019, and in Park City, Utah, on December 1, 2022. Rahneva also has four silver medals and six bronze medals. The World Cup women’s skeleton gold medal in Latvia will give Rahneva confidence as she prepares for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan/Cortina d’Ampezzo.
