What does the new life of the toboggan queen look like?

At some point, Evelin Lanthaler, who is almost 34, decided to give up her career. A career that had led her to the sport of luge, following her older sisters Sandra and Franziska. The youngest, however, was the more consistent one, barely remembers her first race ("I only know that I was lugeing in Stange when I was very young"), but was always driven by enormous ambition. So Evelin, who comes from Platt in Passeier, climbed the ladder of luge step by step, with her triumph at the Junior European Championships in Campill being the first high point in her career.

"That was when my ambition was tickled again and I decided to continue on this path," remembers the current South Tyrolean Sportswoman of the Year, and so after middle school, attending the sports high school in Mals was firmly on the agenda. Snowboarder Edwin Coratti and skier Lisa Agerer were best friends back then - and still are today. The extensive training under tobogganing coach Othmar Tribus paid off, and the young Passeier woman was soon "driving past" the established Renate Gietl, Melanie Batkowski and Ekaterina Lawrentjewa when she was competing on the international stage.

The best natural track luger of all time: Evelin Lanthaler. © Jana Zischg

What followed was a decade of success, starting with the first World Cup victory in 2014 in Olang. This was followed by another 50 World Cup triumphs, 8 overall World Cup victories and no fewer than 5 individual World Championship titles, as well as 4 team titles. But Evelin Lanthaler has remained down to earth, and in an interview at the end of her career she does not want to boast about numbers and statistics, but rather talk openly about the fascination of the sport of luge. “You actually get better even more through defeats.” Evelin Lanthaler Luge gave her everything, but it was not just the successes that were so important, but also the few setbacks. "You actually get better even more through defeats," is the motto of the athlete, who was always able to find motivation to improve from a less than good performance. Evelin Lanthaler only fell into a hole once, when she finished the season level on points and results with her friend and rival Greta Pinggera, but was left behind because Pinggera had won the last race. "This situation gnawed at me for a long time, I had a hard time dealing with it," Evelin still remembers today.

Between Philippines vacation and family planning On the other hand, she finds it difficult to single out a single highlight from her career. "The world championship title in Latzfons was certainly very special, but I have also often experienced great joy in very close competitions when it was enough to make it to the top," she says. And she is infinitely grateful to those who made this path possible for her, starting with her family, who never put any pressure on her, but also all the coaches and "sled magicians" who always prepared the best possible equipment for her.

Now Evelin Lanthaler is looking to the future. A holiday in the Philippines is firmly planned, but she would also like to get to know Iceland or Canada better. And family is also an issue. At 33, you start thinking about having children (“no, I’m not stopping because I’m pregnant. Not yet,” the tobogganer smiles). And she doesn’t want to give up her job as a waitress either. “I like dealing with people, but I’m not planning anything big. If something else comes up, I’ll be there.” And you’ll still find Evelin Lanthaler on the toboggan run. As a fan, but also as a trainer.

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What does the new life of the toboggan queen look like?

The superlatives have been used up, the series of successes is seemingly endless. And yet Evelin Lanthaler is putting an end to her career at the peak of her career. On Sunday, the Passeier woman will compete in her last race in Deutschnofen.

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