A crown to be awarded: Who will succeed Lanthaler?

In recent years, Evelin Lanthaler has been the benchmark in natural track luge. With the 2024/25 World Cup finals, the record winner from South Tyrol's extraordinary career has ended. Who will take her place now?

23 May 2025

From: pm/sn

Evelin Lanthaler has enjoyed an incredible winning streak in the FIL Natural Track Luge World Cup. Since the 2018/2019 winter, she has only failed to win one race: in January 2020, in Vatra Dornei, Romania, Lanthaler finished second behind Greta Pinggera. In all other races—World Cup, World Championships, and European Championships—the winner was always Evelin Lanthaler. With her retirement, a top spot has become vacant. Daniela Mittermair, who is third in the overall standings for the 2024/25 season behind Lanthaler and Austrian Tina Unterberger, has a similar vision for her successor.

The South Tyrolean knows that the cards will be completely reshuffled next winter, and all the lugers want to seize the opportunity to win World Cups. "I see my teammate Nadine Staffler, as well as Riccarda Ruetz and Lisa Walch, at the forefront," she emphasized. "But also my young teammates Lotte Mulser (overall Junior World Cup winner), Tina Stuffer (Junior European Champion), and Jenny Castiglioni (2025 World Championship bronze). Next winter will also depend on mental strength, because none of us has ever been in a position to compete for victory in the World Cup. It will be exciting, and I hope we put up a good fight."

Mittermair is already working on her World Cup form

Mittermair's preparations for the upcoming World Cup winter have already begun. "I try to vary my dryland training: gym, cycling, hiking. I mostly train in the evenings and on weekends, since I always work full-time during the summer months," says the 25-year-old, who will also return to the national team's regular training schedule in June. Mittermair has no concrete vacation plans; she prefers spending a few days off in the mountains to the seaside. Her favorites are the Grosse Cirspitze (2.592 m) and the Latemar (2.842 m).

Daniela Mittermair is already preparing for the next World Cup winter. © Jana Zischg

German Lisa Walch is killing two birds with one stone in her preseason by working as a trainer at the gym this year. The 23-year-old has the Azzurre team, including Daniela Mittermair, Nadine Staffler, and the rest, at the top of her list, as well as Austrian Riccarda Ruetz. "But Evelin will always be my great role model. I hope that one day I'll be able to celebrate such great successes."

Ruetz focuses on himself

Mittermair and Walch consider Ruetz one of the contenders for the throne, but she herself is still holding back. "I've learned to focus on myself in order to get the best out of myself." Since April, Ruetz has been in Graz, where she is undergoing training for the police sports team. Only then will the vice world champion concentrate on preseason training.