PARK CITY — One luge World Cup gold-medal drought ended on Saturday at Utah Olympic Park, but another continued.
Patience finally paid off for Italian Reinhold Rainer, who claimed his first gold after 10 years in World Cup action. But American Tony Benshoof, in his eighth season of competition, is still looking for his first.
"Sometimes I lost patience to think about winning races," Rainer said through an interpreter. "I have worked hard to get on top."
His highest World Cup finish prior to Saturday was fourth in 1998. His highest finish this season was seventh.
Rainer posted a winning time of 1:32.345 seconds, while Germany's Denis Geppert won the silver with a time of 1:32.393 and Benshoof the bronze at 1:32.440.
Current World Cup standings leader, Italy's Armin Zoggeler, finished seventh (1:32.672).
Benshoof's third-place finish was his third consecutive bronze this year, and it moved him up a spot to second in the World Cup standings. He trails Zoggeler by 79 points while Germany's David Moller is six points behind Benshoof in third.
"I've been doing this for 14 years. I'm experienced and strong this year and my head is together," Benshoof said.
The World Cup now moves to Lake Placid, N.Y. — to a track Benshoof calls the toughest on the tour — to begin the second half of the year. He said it will not only require work to move up but to stay where he is in the standings.
"There's still a long season left and a lot can change," he said. "I'm not relaxing yet."
In his second try, Benshoof became the first American to medal in a World Cup event in Park City.
"I'm very happy, make no mistakes about it. These guys are great competitors and for me to be up with them is a wonderful feeling. Of course, a victory would have been nice on my home track."
He conceded his finish would have been better if he could have mastered the early turns.
"Curve 2 is one of the toughest curves in the whole sport, hands down," he said. "It's always been difficult for me. It got me at the Olympics and it got me today."
He finished 17th on the same track in the Olympics last year.
He was also hurt by early misty weather conditions.
"My particular sled is set up for fast tracks. When there is moisture in the air, that creates a lot of frost and that in turn slows down the sled," he said. "One-tenth of a second was the difference. It wasn't favorable for me."
Benshoof's first run was 46.421, which left him in third place, but in the second run he finished 46.012.
In women's action, Germany, as expected, won its 44th-consecutive World Cup event behind clean-sweep performances. Gold went to Sikle Kraushaar, silver to Sylke Otto and bronze to Barbara Niedernhuber.
Kraushaar, Otto, Niedernhuber and Wischnewski were the top four finishers after the first run. Americans Brenna Margol, Ashley Hayden and Courtney Zablocki were fifth, sixth, and seventh heading into the final round.
Hayden was the top American finisher at fifth; Margol finished sixth.
E-mail: jhinton@desnews.com