Zhao Dan wins China's first women's skeleton gold at IBSF World Cup

Zhao Dan made history for China as she won the country's first ever gold medal in the women's skeleton event at the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Cup in Yanqing, Beijing, on Saturday.

The 21-year-old finished first in both heats and sealed the victory with a time of 2:04.27, 0.37 seconds ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic champion Hannah Neise of Germany. Britain's Freya Tarbit seized the bronze in 2:04.68.

In the same event last season, Zhao also made history by winning China's first medal in the women's skeleton at the IBSF World Cup in Yanqing, pocketing a silver and finishing just 0.02 seconds behind gold medalist Tina Hermann of Germany.

"I finally realized my dream at home. Our whole team made great progress in recent years, and I performed my best today and felt delighted to win the gold," Zhao said after the race. "I need to keep focused and try my best in the following events overseas."

In the men's skeleton, Germany's Christopher Grotheer, who won gold in Beijing in 2022, clocked 2:01.93 to clinch victory once more. Britain's Matt Weston finished second, just 0.01 seconds behind Grotheer, while China's Yin Zheng took the bronze.