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Road to Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympics
Youth A athlete Lily Cooke raced in Bludenz, Austria in the Continental cup finishing a respectable 19th place. This is the first race in her campaign to make history and become the first Irish athlete to qualify for the Youth Olympics in luge.
Record Breaking season
Elsa Desmond has finished a truly record breaking season on the senior circuit. Finishing 29th in the world cup overall and 26th in the nations cup overall. She also set new national records on 5 different tracks, an amazing achievement.
Summer Training
Competitive athletes Elsa Desmond and Lily Cooke travelled to Romania for a week of start training. We are hugely grateful to Romania for the ongoing support they have given our athletes through this official partnership. This was a fantastic opportunity for both athletes to improve there crucial start technique as well as a first opportunity for the girls to try out a doubles sled.
About
Luge riders hurtle down a slippery ice track at great speed, relying on reflexes for steering. Unlike bobsleigh, however, they have no protection should they make an error.
Swiss origins
Luge is the French word for “sledge” and, like bobsleigh, it was developed as a sport in Switzerland. Its roots go back to the 16th century, but it was not until 300 years later that the first luge tracks were built by Swiss hotel owners to cater for thrill-seeking tourists.
DAVOS
The first international race course was held in Davos in 1883, with competitors racing along an icy 4km road between Davos and the village of Klosters.
NO BRAKES
Luge is one of the oldest winter sports. It involves competitors lying on their backs on a tiny sled with their feet stretched out in front of them, and racing down an icy track at speeds in the range of 140 km/h, without brakes. As well as the singles, there is a pairs event, with the larger of the two team members lying on top for better aerodynamics.
OLYMPIC HISTORY
It was not until 1955 that the first World Championship was organised, i.e. 41 years after the first European Championships. Nine years later, in 1964, luge made its Olympic debut, at the Innsbruck Games, with a mixed event, a men’s event and a women’s event. The programme has not changed since then. Since 1976, this sport has taken place on the same track as bobsleigh.
The discipline was dominated by the East Germans, who won 15 of the 21 gold medals available between 1964 and 1988. One of the undisputed masters of luge is a German: Georg Hackl, who won gold three times consecutively, in 1994 in Lillehammer, 1998 in Nagano and 2002 in Salt Lake City.
Based in Oldcastle Co. Meath, the Irish Luge federation was founded in 2020 to support Irish luge athletes on the world stage.
https://www.olympic.org/luge-equipment-and-history
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