Huefner romps to fourth world title in Altenberg

By Sportsbeat staff

OLYMPIC gold medallist Tatjana Huefner twice broke the track record to clinch her fourth World Championships title in some style on home soil in Altenberg, Germany.

GOLDEN GIRL: Tatjana Huefner secured her fourth world title with two new track records in Altenberg

The 28-year-old, who also topped the world podium in 2007, 2008 and 2011 posted a time of 52.183 seconds in her first run and while Russia's European champion Tatiana Ivanova bettered that in 52.161, Huefner responded again with her second track record of the day to take victory in a winning time of 1:44.381 minutes.

In securing a fourth world golsd, Huefner has now pulled level with East Germany's Margit Schumann and Germany's Sylke Otto, completing an excellent weekend for the host nation with Felix Loch taking the men's title on Saturday.

"It feels great to be mentioned in the same breath as those great lugers Margit Schumann and Sylke Otto," said Huefner, who has three World Cup wins to her name this season and tops the overall rankings.

"I absolutely wanted to attack in the second run. However not to defeat Tatiana Ivanova but to take the title."

Just four days before her 21st birthday, Ivanova, who recently broke her finger at the Oberhof World Cup, held on for silver while Germany's Natalie Geisenberger held on for bronze, a further 0.403 off the pace.

The Russian said: "I'm simply very happy. After I suffered a broken finger I never reckoned with such a result. I gritted my teeth at the start."

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