Tucker West wins 13th USA Luge men's start title, while Emily Fischnaller takes women's crown

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LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (AP) — Tucker West extended his record by winning the USA Luge men's start championship for the 13th time Friday night, while Emily Fischnaller narrowly edged Summer Britcher for the women's title.

The start championships, at USA Luge's indoor facility, are the unofficial start to the team's competitive season.

West's combined three-start time of 10.68 seconds earned him the men's win by a wide margin over Hunter Harris (11.13 seconds) and Aidan Mueller (11.29).

“I was struggling with a lat injury for the majority of the summer, so I’m happy with how I’ve come back from that,” West said. “It’s feeling good, and I’m hoping to keep that feeling going into the season.”

Fischnaller — who went by her maiden name of Sweeney before marrying Italian luger Dominik Fischnaller earlier this year — finished her three starts in 11.65 seconds, just ahead of Britcher (11.69) and Ashley Farquharson (11.86).

“I’m pleasantly surprised with my times,” Fischnaller said. “I’ve been feeling a little rough the last couple of weeks, so it’s good to be able to show up when it matters. And I’m really proud of all the work that our whole team has put in. I mean, the times that everyone in each discipline were posting up were awesome. So, it’s a really great boost before the season for our team overall.”

The men's doubles start title went to Zack DiGregorio and Sean Hollander, who finished in 10.89 seconds. Two-time junior world champions Marcus Mueller and Ansel Haugsjaa were second in 10.97, while Dana Kellogg and Frank Ike were third in 11.37.

Chevonne Forgan and Sophia Kirkby won the women's doubles title in 11.17 seconds, ahead of Maya Chan and Sophia Gordon (11.93).

Preseason on-ice training for USA Luge is expected to begin Oct. 9 in Lillehammer, Norway. The World Cup season begins in Igls, Austria on Dec. 5-7, with two U.S. races — the first in Park City, Utah, from Dec. 12-13 and then Lake Placid on Dec. 19-20 — later in the year.

The first five World Cup races will determine the team that will race at the Milan-Cortina Olympics in February.

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