The 27-year-old finished on an overall time of 3 min 44.81sec after clocking 56.56 and 56.22 in runs three and four, respectively, today.

Compatriot Axel Jungk was the fastest in both runs three and four, posting times of 56.41 and 56.04, but ended 0.02 seconds behind in the runners-up spot.

Grotheer, who did not compete in this season’s IBSF World Cup, joined the German team late on after Felix Keisinger secured his own place in the event by triumphing at his home IBSF Junior World Championships in Winterberg earlier this month.

He becomes the first German winner of the event since Andy Böhme in 2000.

"The last run wasn’t good; I thought I hadn’t done enough," Grotheer, last year’s world mixed team champion, said.

"But I really pushed hard again down at the bottom.

"I already noticed ahead of the third run that I was more nervous today than I was on the first day.

"I can’t believe I pulled it off."

Jungk had the best time in three of the runs but it was his second run yesterday, in which he was third fastest, that ultimately meant he had to settle for World Championship silver for the second time in his career after winning his first medal back in 2017.

Alexander Gassner completed a German top three, finishing 0.05 seconds behind Grotheer.

The men’s skeleton has only seen a single-nation medal sweep once previously at the World Championships.

Austria’s Christian Auer, Andi Schmid and Michael Grünberger achieved the feat on home ice in Igls in 1991.

Latvia’s Martins Dukurs, the defending world champion and current record holder with a total of six global titles to date, was left without a World Championship medal for the first time since 2009.

The Vancouver 2010 and Sochi 2014 Olympic silver medallist finished fourth in Altenberg ahead of Keisinger and Olympic champion Yun Sung-bin of South Korea.

In the women’s skeleton event, Switzerland’s Marina Gilardoni is the surprise leader after the first two runs.

Recording the best time in both runs, Gilardoni has a lead of 0.63 seconds over defending champion Tina Hermann of Germany going into tomorrow’s final.

The 32-year-old, who was the silver medallist at this year’s European Championships in Latvian town Sigulda, clocked an overall time of 1:57.83 after posting 58.96 in the first run and 58.87 in the second.

Hermann climbed from fifth place to second during run two, ending the day on 1:58.46.

Russia’s Elena Nikitina will start the second half of the race in third place, 0.77 seconds back.

The reigning European champion, who won the overall World Cup title in 2018-2019, set a new starting record of 5.29 during run one.

Austria’s Janine Flock, the three-time European champion, is currently fourth ahead of overall World Cup winner Jacqueline Lölling of Germany.

Sixth place is held by junior world champion Anna Fernstädtová of Czech Republic.

Runs three and four in the women's skeleton will precede runs one and two in the four-man bobsleigh tomorrow.