Olympic track didn't cause luger's death: officials
Last Updated: Saturday, February 13, 2010 | 4:49 AM ET
The Associated Press
Fast and frightening, yes. Responsible for the death of a luger, no.
Officials at the Vancouver Olympics decided late Friday night against any major changes in the Whistler track or any delays in competition — and even doubled up on the schedule — in the wake of the horrifying accident that killed a 21-year-old luger from the Republic of Georgia.
They said they would raise the wall where the slider flew off the track and make an unspecified "change in the ice profile" as a preventive measure "to avoid that such an extremely exceptional accident could occur again."
Within sight of the finish line, Nodar Kumaritashvili crashed coming out of the 16th turn and slammed into an unpadded steel pole while travelling about 140 kilometres an hour. Despite frantic attempts by paramedics to save his life, he died at a trauma centre.
The International Luge Federation and Vancouver Olympic officials said their investigation showed that the crash was the result of human error and "there was no indication that the accident was caused by deficiencies in the track."
In a joint statement they said Kumaritashvili was late coming out of the next-to-last turn and failed to compensate. "This resulted in a late entrance into Curve 16 and, although the athlete worked to correct the problem, he eventually lost control of the sled, resulting in the tragic accident."
Men lugers, who were scheduled to finish training Friday morning, will get two extra practice runs Saturday. Women will train four hours later than scheduled. Men's competition will be held later in the day as planned.
Track safety questioned
Kumaritashvili's death cast a pall over the Winter Games before they even started.
"I have no words to say what we feel," said International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge, visibly shaken by the day's events.
Concerns about the course had been raised for months. There were worries that the $100-million-plus venue was too technically difficult, and a lack of significant practice time by everyone but Canada's sliders would result in a rash of accidents.
"It is a nervous situation," Latvian luge federation president Atis Strenga said. "It's a big tragedy for all (of) luge. I hope, we all hope, it's the first accident and the last accident in this race."
Problems at the track date back to World Cup events and international training weeks held last year, when several of the world's top bobsled drivers were upended trying to make their way down the track with its tricky labyrinth of curves and unprecedented speed.
American pilot Steven Holcomb christened one of the course's toughest sections — the 13th curve — as "50-50" to reflect the odds of steering a sled through it cleanly.
Kumaritashvili, who had crashed during training Wednesday, was nearing the bottom of his sixth practice run in a turn nicknamed "Thunderbird." He was on a higher path — line, they call it in luge — down the final bends than most sliders prefer, and the combination of speed and gravitational pull was too much for his 176-pound body to control.
Sliding diagonally, Kumaritashvili smashed into a corner entering the final straightaway feet-first. He was knocked off his sled and sailed in the other direction, apparently hitting his head before coming to rest on a metal walkway. His sled stayed on the track and stopped near the finish line.
The first rescue worker just happened to be nearby and was at his side within seconds.
At the finish line, there was a loud gasp as onlookers watched in horror as he was catapulted helplessly through the air.
Officials quickly switched off a giant TV screen showing the action on the track and did not show a replay. Soon after, the track was closed as local police and the RCMP kept media members at a distance as the investigation began.
Kumaritashvili's inexperience may have played a factor in the crash, but he had qualified to compete. This would have been his first Olympics. He competed in five World Cup races this season, finishing 44th in the world standings.
"When you are going that fast, it just takes one slip and you can have that big mistake," U.S. doubles luger Christian Niccum had said Thursday, when asked about track safety. "All of us are very calm going down, but if you start jerking at 90 mph [140 km/h] or making quick reactions, that sled will steer.
"That's the difference between luge and bobsled and skeleton. We're riding on a very sharp edge and that sled will go exactly where we tell it to, so you better be telling it the right things on the way down."
Earlier in the day, two-time Olympic champion 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.
