S. Korean Yun Sung-bin wins skeleton World Cup title in U.S.

SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korean skeleton slider Yun Sung-bin has captured his first World Cup title of the season in the United States. Yun won the second leg of the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Cup in Park City, Utah, on Saturday (local time) with the combined time of 1 minute and 37.32 seconds after two runs. Martins Dukurs of Latvia, who was looking for his 50th World Cup victory, was second at 1:37.95, followed by Axel Jungk of Germany at 1:38.07. This was Yun's first World Cup gold medal since December 2016, when he topped the event in Whistler, Canada. It's also his third World Cup gold medal. His first World Cup gold medal came in February 2016 in St. Moritz in Switzerland. With the latest result, Yun avenged his defeat to Dukurs from the 2017-18 season opener last weekend in Lake Placid, New York, where he took silver behind the Latvian. In Utah, Yun was the top finisher in both heats, completing his first race in 48.82 seconds and second in 48.50 seconds. The 23-year-old South Korean also had the fastest start in both runs. Yun is widely viewed as South Korea's best skeleton medal hope at the 2018 Winter Games on home track in PyeongChang. He finished second in the ISBF World Cup rankings last season behind Dukurs. kdon@yna.co.kr (END)