'I can't really describe it - 'Matt Weston writes himself into the history books with World Championship gold
BySportsbeat
Updated 27/01/2023 at 17:32 GMT
Matt Weston became Britain's first skeleton World Champion in eight years with a sensational performance in Switzerland as he was joined on the extended podium by team-mates Craig Thompson and Marcus Wyatt. "It's an amazing feeling. It's an absolute dream to be World Champion," said Weston. "I knew that I had a good chance after winning the last two World Cups in Altenberg."
Matt Weston reacts at the end of his run in the men's skeleton gold medal event at the Yanqing National Sliding Centre during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Yanqing on February 11, 2022
Image credit: Getty Images
Matt Weston's dreams came true as he slid to Britain's first skeleton World Championship gold in eight years with an untouchable performance in St. Moritz.
The 25-year-old raced to glory on the track in a combined time of 4:28.71, the first Brit to take the title since Lizzie Yarnold in 2015 and the first British man since Kristan Bromley in 2008.
Weston clinched the European crown in Germany earlier this month and has completed the double with a glorious gold in Switzerland in what has been an extraordinary season for the slider.
"It's an amazing feeling. It's an absolute dream to be World Champion," said Weston. "I can't really describe it, to be honest. It's pretty special!
"I knew that I had a good chance after winning the last two World Cups in Altenberg but to actually come here and make it a reality is incredible.
"To do it at the birthplace of the sport as well makes it even more memorable.
"I'm gutted for Craig (Thompson) that he just missed bronze but it's been a brilliant week for all of us - three in the top five is awesome.
"It's been a brilliant season so far but this is something else."
After the first two runs, Weston held a comfortable 1.13 lead over the rest of the competition, setting a track record of 1:06.88 on his second run.
On the second day of competition, the 2022 Olympian extended his lead even further, finishing a staggering 1.79 seconds ahead of silver medallist Amedeo Bagnis of Italy to grab the gold.
Bagnis shocked the skeleton world with his medal-winning performance, the 23-year-old upgrading his bronze from last season's Junior Worlds.
Korea's Seunggi Jung grabbed bronze in a tense fourth run, narrowly pipping Britain's Craig Thompson to a medal by one hundredth of a second.
Olympic champion Christopher Grotheer finished back in 10th place, with disappointing second and third runs hindering his chances at a podium position.
Victory in Switzerland brings a sweet ending to Weston's January, with a World Cup double in Altenberg and European gold already in the bag.
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