Nina Castiglioni, Franziska Hofer and Tina Stuffer (from left).

Franziska Hofer's first victory at the Junior World Cup in Passeier

Franziska Hofer secured a home victory at the FIL Alpine Luge Junior World Cup in Passeier Valley. The 16-year-old celebrated her first Junior World Cup win on Epiphany.

06 January 2026

From: pm

Franziska Hofer surprised everyone on her home track. With the fastest time in both runs, she celebrated her first Junior World Cup victory in 1:52.95 minutes, ahead of her teammates Nina Castiglioni (+0,87 seconds) and Junior World Champion Tina Stuffer (+1,25). At the season opener in Winterleiten (AUT) at the end of December 2025, Hofer had finished no higher than ninth; her previous best result was sixth place.

In the overall standings, Castiglioni (185 points) leads ahead of Hofer (139) and Lotte Mulser (130).

Slovenians dominate in men's singles

In the men's singles, the Slovenians are setting the pace in the Junior World Cup: After Vid Kralj's opening victory in Winterleiten, his younger brother Ziga was in the lead in Passeier: With a total time of 1:51.14 minutes, the 17-year-old secured his second victory in the Junior World Cup, ahead of Paolo Auer (AUT/+0,22 seconds) and Vid Kralj (+0,29).

The three-way battle continues at the top of the overall standings, with Vid Kralj and Auer tied for first place with 170 points each, ahead of Ziga Kralj (160).

The Alpine Luge Junior World Cup continues with the penultimate race on January 10th/11th in Umhausen (AUT).