By Canadian Press

Canadian Vathje finishes third in overall World Cup skeleton standings

Jan 19, 2018 | 1:58 PM

KONIGSSEE, Germany — Canada’s Elisabeth Vathje captured her first career Crystal Globe for finishing third place in the overall World Cup skeleton standings on Friday after a ninth-place finish in the final race of the season.

The 23-year-old from Calgary, who clocked a ninth-place time of one minute 45.41 seconds, slid to three silvers and one bronze medal during the Olympic season en route to reaching the overall podium.

“It is pretty cool to win my first ever globe,” said Vathje. “It is even cooler that a Canadian has won the bronze globe in each of the last three years which shows the strength and depth of our program.”

Ottawa’s Mirela Rahneva finished third last year, while Jane Channell of North Vancouver, B.C., took it in 2016.

The 29-year-old Channell led the Canadian charge on Friday with a sixth-place finish with a combined time of 1:44.95 on a snowy day. The women’s race was originally cancelled and then rescheduled for later in the day.

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“It was a bit overwhelming. The weather wasn’t co-operating all day and the snow was on and off, so it played with me mentally,” Channell said. “The start groove was fast so being able to have a quick getaway was key for me to build speed and a buffer down the track.”

Channell finished fifth in the World Cup standings. She won a silver medal in Whistler, B.C. and had four sixth-place finishes.

Rahneva, who did not race on Friday, placed eighth overall.

“Finishing fifth overall feels great, but what is even more incredible is Elisabeth finishing third,” Channell said. “All three of us girls finished in the top-10 which is amazing. To have such strong teammates, and competition pushing me to become the best I can be, I feel like the three of us are where we want to be.”

The Canadian Press