CARLSBAD — Carlsbad resident Kaillie Humphries won the inaugural women’s monobob (single-person bobsleigh) world championship Sunday in Altenberg, Germany, increasing her career total to a record five world championships.
Humphries entered Sunday’s final two runs 0.04 seconds behind German Stephanie Schneider in the championships conducted by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation. She took the lead by posting the fastest time on her third run, 59.59 seconds.
On her final run, the 35-year-old Humphries had her best start time of the competition, 6.14 seconds, and set a track record, 59.47 seconds.
“I’m ending on a high and I really just continue to think about how grateful I am to be here, to represent the United States, and to compete,” Humphries said. “It’s such a huge honor. I’m so happy.”
Humphries had a four-run combined time of 3:59.62. Schneider was second in 4:00.12.
The women’s monobob will be an Olympic event for the first time at the 2022 Beijing Games.
Humphries teamed with Lolo Jones to win the two-woman title on Feb. 6, becoming the first woman to win four world bobsled championships. Humphries also won the 2012, 2013 and 2020 world championship in the two-woman event, the first two competing for her native Canada.
She became eligible to compete for the U.S. following her marriage in 2019 to Travis Armbruster, a former U.S. men’s bobsledder.
Humphries won Olympic gold medals for Canada in the two-woman bobsled in 2010 and 2014 and a bronze in the event in 2018. She switched to representing the U.S. in 2019 because of abuse and harassment she claims she faced from the Canadian bobsled federation.