CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — The primary official check race on the controversial sliding track being rebuilt for the Milan Cortina Olympics was gained by skeleton world champion Matt Weston of Britain on Friday.
Weston beat European champion Samuel Maier of Austria by 0.15 seconds after two runs within the head-first self-discipline down the Eugenio Monti observe.
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It was additionally the opening skeleton World Cup race of the Olympic season.
Yin Zheng of China completed third, 0.18 behind, after setting the primary observe file at 56.79 seconds in his opening run.
Junior world champion Lukas Nydegger of Germany achieved his greatest World Cup end in fourth, lacking the rostrum by 0.05.
The highest American finisher was Austin Florian in tenth whereas Cortina native Mattia Gaspari led host Italy in seventeenth.
A ladies’s race and a combined workforce occasion have been scheduled for later, adopted by bobsled races Saturday and Sunday.
Whereas the aggressive a part of the observe in Cortina is prepared, surrounding areas are nonetheless being constructed and no spectators have been allowed in for the check occasion.
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The Worldwide Olympic Committee (IOC) didn’t need hundreds of thousands to be spent rebuilding the observe in Cortina, which had closed in 2008 because of rising upkeep prices. The IOC had advised holding sliding occasions for these video games in close by Austria or Switzerland as an alternative.
However the Italian authorities pushed forward anyway and is spending 118 million euros ($136 million) remaking the venue.
The Olympics are scheduled for Feb. 6-22.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
