Sad news: Luger dies in crash | Golden Skate

Sad news: Luger dies in crash

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
It's a reminder that life is precious and can be lost in an instant. my prayers and thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.


Interesting to read that this course has been talked about all week as being unsafe. It's so sad that it takes something so drastic for a meeting to actually be called:

It was unclear how fast Kumaritashvili was going, although many sliders have exceeded 90 mph on this course. The track is considered the world's fastest and several Olympians recently questioned its safety. More than a dozen athletes have crashed during Olympic training.

Earlier in the day, gold-medal favorite Armin Zoeggeler of Italy crashed, losing control of his sled on Curve 11. Zoeggeler came off his sled and held it with his left arm to keep it from smashing atop his body. He slid on his back down several curves before coming to a stop and walking away.

Training days in Whistler have been crash-filled. A Romanian woman was briefly knocked unconscious and at least four Americans -- Chris Mazdzer on Wednesday, Megan Sweeney on Thursday and both Tony Benshoof and Bengt Walden on Friday in the same training session where Zoeggeler wrecked -- have had serious trouble just getting down the track.
"I think they are pushing it a little too much," Australia's Hannah Campbell-Pegg said Thursday night after she nearly lost control in training. "To what extent are we just little lemmings that they just throw down a track and we're crash-test dummies? I mean, this is our lives."

quotes from this article: http://www.nbcolympics.com/news-features/news/newsid=412058.html#luger+seriously+hurt+crash
 

Tigger

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 18, 2007
Melissa Hollingsworth, one of our top Skelton racers, has also said that the track's a bit tricky due to the speeds reached on it.

So very, very tragic and my thoughts and prayers are not only w/his family and friends, but the entire Georgian Olympic Team.
 

DesertRoad

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 31, 2005
This article from before the incident shows that the Canadian organizers are culpable for his death as well as the injuries suffered by other competitors:

http://www.nbcolympics.com/news-features/news/newsid=409285.html

In a ruthless drive to increase Canada's medal count, the organizers deliberately built a course that is considered dangerous and difficult even by elite lugers, and then gave the Canadian athletes far more time and opportunity to practice on the course. And now this has gone beyond unsporting to inhuman. This taints whatever medals the Canadian athletes will win. There has been a lot of corruption and human rights violations with various Olympic games, but this stands out as one of the most disgusting things a host country has perpetrated.
 

MissIzzy

Final Flight
Joined
Dec 26, 2006
Latest is that the Georgian delegation may pull out of the Games-I've heard both "may" and "will" used, so I don't know when the decision's being made, though it probably will be by tonight.
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
Latest is that the Georgian delegation may pull out of the Games-I've heard both "may" and "will" used, so I don't know when the decision's being made, though it probably will be by tonight.

I hope they stay in, and that all of the athletes pull out amazing feats of their own in honor of their fallen teammate.
 

MikiAndoFan#1

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 30, 2009
It's official. The Georgian delegation will not participate.

:cry:

So does that mean no Olympics for Elene?

R.I.P., Nodar Kumaritashvili.
 

aftertherain

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 15, 2010
It was the first thing I saw when I woke up. It's so sad. =(

My heart goes out to his family and friends.
 

Wicked

Final Flight
Joined
May 26, 2009
That luge course needs to be slowed down and made safer. Kumaritashvili was just one of many crashes. When gold medal favorites and world class athletes crash at this rate there is definitely a problem. RIP.

Does anybody know why there is no netting around luge and sled courses?
 

cloudkicker09

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 30, 2006
(Where did my reply go?)

This is a tragedy, and someone should be held responsible, and if it indeed is the Canadian delegation, then so be it.

There is talk that luge will be canceled as a result of this tragedy, and I think that it should be. It is a shame that even after many athletes said that the track was not safe, it took the death of an olympian for someone to take action.

My thoughts and prayers are with his family, he was only 21 years old. I hope that Georgia does not withdraw, and competes in loving memory of their fallen teammate.
 

snowflake

I enjoy what I like
Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 10, 2008
My thoughts and prayers are with his family, he was only 21 years old. I hope that Georgia does not withdraw, and competes in loving memory of their fallen teammate.
:agree:

It is very, very sad. But luge is a dangerous sport where the athletes are proud of being the fastest. Who to blame? I really don't know.
 

Raatkirani

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 22, 2006
To make such a treacherous track is unforgivable. Even today, before Nodar's death, there were several athletes who crashed, including the gold medal favorite Armin Zoeggler (2002, 2006 gold medalist). Huffington Post has the crash video and it's bad.
 

silversprings77

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 22, 2010
i saw a picture snapped at the moment he flew off the luge and all i could think of is "WHY ARE THERE NO SAFETY BARRIERS?" there was no padding or fence to keep him from going over that wall. he was just out of control. but he died doing something honorable...representing his country proudly at an Olympics...RIP.
 

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
A Sad Pre- Opening - Georgia May Withdraw

Tragically 21 yr. old Nodar Kumaritashvili - Luge : Georgia ,was killed in his second training run today . Georgia is considering withdrawing it's team. I couldn't find a link for some reason..but it will be everywhere any time now.

How heartbreaking. no-one should ever forget what these athletes put on the line.
***
Edit : Sorry ..noticed after the fact that this was posted in the non- skating section...

What a terrible thing ..the emotional anguish the other Georgian athletes must be feeling..their friend and teammate and their own Olympic dreams gone in a flash..all the attendant grief, and the confused emotions it brings..it's all dreadful.

From a skating centric POV, I'm sending thought s of caring and strenghth to Elene.
 
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Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
did they have crash barriers in 2006 or 2002? just trying to compare...

have not watched the video, have seen some of the screen captures (can't go anywhere olympics online and not see it) - one of the big screens in the olympic village had it frozen with the headline "luger dies in crash" which I find horribly tacky.
 

Raatkirani

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 22, 2006
In yahoo's olympic blog, I read a comment by a gentleman that the luge track design was supposed to include padded flexible fiberglass columns, but it was changed to steel a little later. The poster had insinuated that Nodar K. would have at least had a fighting chance to survive a cushioned crash rather than one straight into metal. If that is the case, I really hope the designers had a really really good reason to change the columns.
 

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
Re ; big screen freeze frame : Horribly tacky..but they always do dwell on disaster , don't they.( the agony of defeat )

I'm trying to look back about barriers, too, but as I understand it , it was right on the last turn before the straight run to the finish..maybe not a place where the need for barriers would seem obvious ? I don't know. He was way too high in the turn..Apparently the sport itself has already decided that future courses will pull back on speed..the sport has become increasingly dangerous in the quest for faster finishes..
 
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