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"To what extent are we just...crash test dummies?" From Vancouver, NPR's Howard Berkes reports. Tribune News Service reports that he has suffered life-threatening injuries. There is soft and slushy snow at the downhill course in Whistler, so the men's race has been delayed until Monday. The men's luge event is still scheduled for tonight, despite the crash that killed a slider from the Republic of Georgia. Most of the crowd rose to give respectful applause. Author: SI Staff Publish date: Feb 12, 2010. Some of other lugers said that the breathtaking speed of the track surprised them when they first rode it. Feb 19, 2010 . The luge racers are back on the mountain in Whistler, British Columbia, on Saturday, the first full day of the Winter Olympics. One second, you know, you have tears welling up in your eyes because you're thinking about Nodar and then the next minute, you're psyching yourself up and you're grabbing the handles and you're pulling off. Crews have shaved the track ice at the site of the accident to keep an out of control athlete and sled in the track and they've changed the starting point. By Candus Thomson. Mr. SVEIN ROMSTAD (Secretary-General, International Luge Federation): The bottom line is that the decisions made are to deal with the emotional component for the athletes to leave it as best as possible the traumatic experience of this tragic event. And some sliders aren't sure what to make of the changes. "The reason we do this sport is to go fast," said Hamlin. Lots of training runs are important on a fast track, especially for less experienced sliders. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. More track time helps athletes learn how to handle a track speed and difficulty. Mr. COCKERLINE: I feel like I'm losing my mind a little bit. Mr. MARK OVERGAARD(ph): And then they've been coming down here and just tipping boxes, paper boxes and (BEEP). Luge ; NBC handling of luger death ruins Olympics for me. The luge racers are back on the mountain in Whistler, British Columbia, on Saturday, the first full day of the Winter Olympics. More. A joint statement from the International Olympic Committee, the Games' organizing committee VANOC and the International Luge Federation offered condolences to the luger's family. I mean, it's a little bit tougher to get yourself psyched up to go when you know your ice is in the (unintelligible). But men's luge will continue as scheduled tonight. BERKES: Now, the men digging their spiked gloves into the ice at the start of their slides are doing that from the women's start - a full turn lower down the track - and the women will move down to the junior start. The Fédération Internationale de Luge de Course (FIL) was founded in 1957. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. BERKES: Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said today that a luge track would be built in the hometown of Nodar Kumaritashvili and that it would carry his name. There was also question as to how the unusually warm temperatures may have impacted the safety of the luge tracks. At a press conference late Friday, Rogge became emotional, taking off his glasses to wipe away his tears. ", Benshoof estimated that he and his fellow lugers will "hit 100 miles per hour during the race" which even the thrill-seeker admitted would be "very very fast.". Earlier, the women's super combined, a race that combines downhill and slalom, was scrubbed. Luge ; Let the Games begin, please. Don't come down here and destroy it. Men and women compete in singles, and the men have a doubles event. "Sorry it's a bit difficult to remain composed," said Rogge, adding that now is not the time to "talk about investigations. Feb. 12, 2010 — -- An Olympic luger crashed and died just hours before the opening ceremonies for the Winter Olympics today after the sled he was riding flew off the track at nearly 90 mph and flung the athlete into a steel pole. The winner normally completes the route with the fastest overall time. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. "I think I can say that for everyone, and you've got to have the extreme factor in there sometimes. Luge is the fastest of the sliding sports, with athletes reaching 90 miles an hour on an ice track. Rescue workers performed chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation less than a minute after the crash, and then quickly airlifted the luger to a trauma center in Whistler. ", Speaking for the International Luge Federation, President Josef Fendt called the accident, "The gravest thing that can happen in sport.". Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? WATCH MORE INTERVIEWS!! Nodar Kumaritashvili of Georgia died at 21 in a luge crash as he practiced for the 2010 Winter Olympics, a tragedy that stunned the sports world and left his family seeking answers. WARNING: includes disturbing images. Ruben Gonzalez, a member of the Argentinian luge team who witnessed the crash, told ABC News Sports Radio, "Everybody gasped, a collective gasp, and I've been in the sport since '84, and I've never seen anybody fly out of a track before.". "The track is super fast and I'll tell you, when I first got here it felt like a blur," said American luger Tony Benshoof. But we've made a lot of measures with the federation to ensure that the athletes going there were confident to get down. The postponement wiped out the entire weekend of alpine events. BERKES: In other words, the Whistler Olympic track isn't at fault, despite its reputation as the fastest and perhaps most dangerous luge, bobsled and skeleton track in the world. Information about your device and internet connection, including your IP address, Browsing and search activity while using Verizon Media websites and apps. In all, seven people were arrested. ", An Australian athlete said late today, the track is too much. HOWARD BERKES: The violent death of 21-year-old Nodar Kumaritashvili prompted Olympic organizers to reconfigure the luge competition, raising to 12 feet the side wall that the young Georgian catapulted over at 90 miles an hour and into a steel pole. BERKES: Gayda rejected claims that Olympic organizers kept the host country's competitors off the track to preserve home ice advantage. Horrific Luge accident claims life of Olympic Athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili, a Georgian luge competitor at the Vancouver Olympics, crashed during a training run today and hit a metal pole. The 21-year-old lost control of his sled near the finish of the track that is believed to be the fastest in the world. BERKES: Off the luge track, weather continues to bedevil some events. President MIKHEIL SAAKASHVILI (Republic of Georgia): No sports mistake is supposed to be fatal. The death Friday of a luge competitor looms over the games after officials made several changes to the track. It takes a lot of the excitement out of it. We and our partners will store and/or access information on your device through the use of cookies and similar technologies, to display personalised ads and content, for ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. "I agree one hundred percent," said Gonzalez about the President's comments, "My response is, why didn't they do it? That race has been rescheduled for Thursday. At the modern Olympic Games, up to and including the 2016 Summer Paralympics, 10 athletes have died while either competing in or practicing their sport.In addition, another 14 participants have died at the Olympics from other causes; 11 of these deaths resulted from the Munich massacre of 1972.. Several incidents related to the Olympics have caused the death of non-participants. But Gonzalez said that despite what the critics say, the higher the temperature, the easier the track is on a luger beacuse the ice is "softer and easier to navigate." You know what, we live in our town. "Pretty much from the top down you've got your hands full. "I mean, this is our lives.". RAZ: Outside the games, a relatively small group of anti-Olympic protestors had a few run-ins with Vancouver police today, as well as some Canadian supporters of the games. Luge made its Olympic debut at the 1964 Innsbruck Winter Games. We Insist: A Timeline Of Protest Music In 2020. That incident, and the weather, have left organizers scrambling to save the games from a difficult start. International luge officials insist that these changes are more for anxiety than safety. Georgian Luger Flies Off Track, Into Steel Pole and Dies Before Olympics Start, NY shuts down 10,000 person wedding as Cuomo reveals new COVID-19 plan, Trump blasts Sasse on Twitter over critical comments, Suspect dead, 9 in custody following beheading of teacher in Paris suburb, Kentucky AG asks to keep evidence sealed in Breonna Taylor case. Luge ; … There were also plans to lower the Olympic and Canadian flags to half staff. RAZ: A very Canadian attitude from Vancouverite Mark Overgaard talking about the relatively small protests today outside the Winter Olympics. Copyright © 2010 NPR. Ian Cockerline is a luge athlete from Canada. We don't care if you protest, just don't come down and destroy our town. "He was having a good run and he just made a mistake at the last curve and just came out, hit a pole," he said. Gonzalez, who had trained with Kumaritashvili for the past two years, called Kumaritashvil "a solid guy," and said he was respected by his peers. More than 50,000 ticket-holders packed into the stadium for the evening extravaganza, the first Olympic opening or closing ceremony ever held indoors. Some damaged cars and threw a newspaper box through the window of a bank. The statement also confirmed that there is an investigation underway into the circumstances of the accident and that training has since been suspended. Even before Kumaritashvili's tragic accident there was criticism brewing of the high speeds the luge track allows athletes to reach. ", The Associated Press contributed to this report, 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. He also rejected the clear suggestion by Olympic organizers that driver error lead to his death.

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