Modesto’s Wesenberg becomes first American woman to win skeleton Euro Cup

Modesto’s Kendall Wesenberg is on top of the winter sliding world.

Nearly two months after becoming the first American woman to win a European Cup skeleton race, the Central Catholic High School graduate won the European Cup title on Friday in Igls, Austria.

She’s the first American woman to ever win the European season title. The last American to win it was Rob Murray, who won the men’s overall crown in 2005.

“This season has been incredible,” Wesenberg told Amanda Bird of USA Bobsled and Skelton. “I started out just hoping that I would get a shot at team trials, so winning the Park City selection race was a huge deal for me. I got on a new sled this year and I definitely think that sliding started to click for me. At each new track that we went to, I was really just trying to learn as much as possible and put together the best two runs that I could on race day.”

In the sport of skeleton, a competitor rides a small sled face down on a frozen track with hands at their side. The sport originated in Switzerland in the early 1900s and competitors generally share the same course as the bobsled. It’s been a permanent part of the Olympics since the 2002 Winter Games in Utah after two earlier stints decades ago.

Wesenberg, 24, finished in the top-10 in each of the eight European Cup races, including six top-four finishes and three medal performances.

Her November victory in Lillehammer, Norway, opened the eyes of a lot of people in her sport.

“I never even thought about the overall title until about the halfway point when I realized that I was in the lead,” she said. “It is definitely pretty surreal. I’ve have had a bunch of goals for myself since I got into skeleton and winning a tour was one of them, so that feels really good.”

She secured the crown on Friday by finishing ninth in a time of 1 minute, 53.91 seconds. She finished eighth in her first run on Thursday.

“I would have loved to go out with two better finishes this week, but I really struggled here in Igls,” Wesenberg said. “I know that I still have a lot of work to do to get where I want to be, but for now I am going to enjoy this a little.”

Nevertheless, she won the title with a 40-point margin over Anastasia Shlapak of Russia.

“Winning the European Cup title so early in her career is quite the accomplishment,” said U.S. head coach Tuffy Latour. “She’s had a great season and we’re all really excited to see how she continues to develop.”

Wesenberg, who graduated with a degree in business admistration from the University of Colorado, also credited her teammates with helping her adjust to the European season.

“Traveling together for as long as we do can get tough, but they continually helped me make the most of each day we had on and off the track,” she said. “The group of us worked really well together to break down tracks and corners and keep each spirits up when someone was struggling. I seriously cannot thank them enough.”

This story was originally published January 24, 2015 at 9:30 AM with the headline "Modesto’s Wesenberg becomes first American woman to win skeleton Euro Cup."