Whistler Sliding Centre
Encyclopedia
The Whistler Sliding Centre is a Canadian
bobsleigh
, luge
, and skeleton
track located in Whistler, British Columbia
, that is 125 km (77.7 mi) north of Vancouver
. The centre is part of the Whistler Blackcomb resort, which comprises two ski mountains separated by Fitzsimmons Creek
. Located on the lowermost slope of the northern mountain (Blackcomb Mountain), Whistler Sliding Centre hosted the bobsleigh
, luge
, and skeleton
(an individual sport in which the racer slides down the track head first) competitions for the 2010 Winter Olympics
.
Design work started in late 2004 with construction taking place from June 2005 to December 2007. Bobsledders Pierre Lueders
and Justin Kripps
of Canada took the first run on the track on 19 December 2007. Certification took place in March 2008 with over 200 runs from six different start houses (the place where the sleds start their runs), and was approved both by the International Bobsleigh and Tobogganing Federation (FIBT) and the International Luge Federation (FIL). Training runs took place in late 2008 in preparation for the World Cup events in all three sports in early 2009. World Cup competitions were held in February 2009 for bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton. The top speed for all World Cup events set by German luger Felix Loch
at 153.98 km/h (95.7 mph). In late 2009, more training took place in preparation for the Winter Olympics.
On 12 February 2010, the day of the Olympic opening ceremonies
, Georgia
n luger Nodar Kumaritashvili
was killed during a training run while reportedly going 143.3 km/h (89 mph). This resulted in the men's singles
event being moved to the women's singles
and men's doubles
start house while both the women's singles and men's doubles event were moved to the junior start house. During actual luge competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics, there were only two crashes, which resulted in one withdrawal. Skeleton races on 18–19 February had no crashes though two skeleton racers were disqualified for technical reasons. Bobsleigh competitions had crashes during all three events. This resulted in supplemental training for both the two-woman
and the four-man
event following crashes during the two-man
event. Modifications were made to the track after the two-man event to lessen the frequency of crashes as well. A 20-page report was released by the FIL to the International Olympic Committee
(IOC) on 12 April 2010 and to the public on FIL's website on 19 April 2010 regarding Kumaritashvili's death. Safety concerns at Whistler have affected the track design for the Russian National Sliding Centre
that will be used for the 2014 Winter Olympics
in Sochi
. This includes track simulation and mapping to reduce top speeds by 6 to 9 km/h (3.7 to 5.6 mph) for the Sochi track.
Constructed on part of First Nations
spiritual grounds, the track won two provincial concrete construction awards in 2008 while the refrigeration plant earned Canada's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
"gold" certification two years later.
in 2003, Vancouver was chosen to host the 2010 Winter Olympics
over Pyongchang, South Korea
, and Salzburg
, Austria
. On 15 November 2004, it was announced that Stantec Architecture Limited, which designed the 2002 Winter Olympic bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track
in Park City, Utah
, in the United States, would provide detail design and site master plan of the track. The company was advised by the German track engineering firm IBG. IBG had designed the tracks used in Oberhof
, Germany, the 1988 Winter Olympics
in (Calgary
) and the 2006 Winter Olympics
(Cesana Pariol
). The German firm is also the designer of the Russian National Sliding Centre, the venue for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Site construction of the facility began on 1 June 2005 following environmental approval from the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act
. Safety and security was then put in place on the site. During its peak of construction activities in the summer of 2006, more than 500 workers were involved both at the Sliding Centre and at the Whistler Nordic Venue (now Whistler Olympic Park
). A core group of 60 workers was involved with track construction from June 2005 to December 2007. Basic track construction was completed in November 2007 though fit-out and testing continued into 2008.
(Germany), Erin Hamlin
(United States), Armin Zöggeler
(Italy), and Regan Lauscher
(Canada). Bobsleigh participants during certification in March 2008 included Sandra Kiriasis
(Germany), Lueders (Canada), and Shauna Rohbock
(United States) while skeleton participants included Kristan Bromley
(Great Britain), Kerstin Jürgens
(Szymkowiak since summer 2008 – Germany), and Jon Montgomery
(Canada). Over 200 runs were taken from six different starting positions on the track.
Praise was given both by the FIBT and the FIL over the successful certification of the track. The Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) reviewed the recommendations made from both the FIBT and the FIL to fine tune the track. Canadian teams continued testing and training at the track until 20 March 2008. A total of 2155 runs (335 bobsleigh, 1077 luge, and 743 skeleton) took place at the track with a total of 15 crashes. Final track inspection by the FIL Executive Board took place 25–27 September 2008 before the International Training Week later that year.
, who injured his shoulder. In a 9 December 2008 press release, the Centre was continuing certification by adding protections on the track against crashes and weather. FIL President Josef Fendt
stated that the track's speed was too high with top speeds reaching 149 km/h (92.6 mph) during training. From the 2482 runs executed during the International Training week for luge, there were 73 crashes, a crash rate of three percent which was normal during new track testing. Three lugers, including Loch, were sent to the hospital, but were later released. Italy's Zöggeler stated that "The track can be tackled." and "does not see big problems for the athletes" while Fendt called for the top track speed for future tracks to be lowered to 135 or where possible. For the 2008–09 World Cup season at the Centre, 15115 runs were made for bobsleigh (2153), luge (9672), and skeleton (3290). After the World Cup event on 20–21 February 2009, Austria's Andreas Linger
described the track as "fast, incredibly fast."
Loch stated that luge speeds for men's singles reached 100 km/h (62.1 mph) before turn three at the women's singles and men's doubles' start house. A total of 2818 runs for bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton were made at the track during the four-week time period for the World Cup events. FIL President Fendt stated that "[my] technical delegate told me this week that the Games could start tomorrow and the track would be ready." and he appreciated the whole Whistler Sliding Centre At the 2008–09 World Cup season finale, 135 athletes participated (67 men, 42 women, and 26 doubles) though 144 athletes from 23 nations were registered. During the Luge World Cup event that weekend, 186 runs took place with 16 crashes.
in Salt Lake City and the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary
. The final two days of competition had 3000 total spectators. Medical services, led by VANOC and FIBT medical director Dr. David McDonagh, tested themselves with first responder care and mock scenarios that included athlete extraction from the sled if the accident was severe enough. These services were tested again during the Luge World Cup competition on 20–21 February 2009. A total of 15,000 spectators attended all five days for the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton World Cup events, all sold out. FIBT President Robert H. Storey
stated that the Centre "... is fast, technical, demanding, and interesting.". A total of 235 athletes participated in the 2008–09 World Cup event (92 four-man, 54 two-man, 40 two-woman, 28 men's skeleton, and 21 women's skeleton).
was knocked unconscious during a practice run on 13 November 2009 and was denied any further make-up runs. During training that week, Hoeger expressed concern about the safety of the track. These concerns called for the resignation of track director Ed Moffat, father of lugers Chris
and Mike, to offer equal runs to all lugers in future events, to have Canada forfeit any extra training runs that were negotiated for the 2014 Winter Olympics, and for the Canadian Luge Association be reprimanded for unethical actions and not providing a safe sliding environment, especially after speeds were 10 mph (16.1 km/h) higher than expected. Canadian Luge Association officials declined to comment though they stated to the New York Times that the lugers received up to three times the amount of training runs offered in the run-up to the 2006 Winter Olympics
at Cesana Pariol
.
Team Canada (luge) did not participate in the World Cup
event in Lillehammer
, Norway
during 12–13 December 2009 to train at the Sliding Centre and to compete at the Canadian National Championships that took place on 17 December 2009. A training restriction went into effect on 31 December 2009 where only host nation Canada and athletes from developing nations were allowed to train before the 2010 Games. For the 2009–10 season, there were a total of 15736 runs among bobsleigh (2512), luge (8794), and skeleton (4070) with a total of 115 crashes among the three sliding disciplines.
s (C$5) with children under 12 admitted free. World Cup competition for bobsleigh and skeleton took place on 2–8 February 2009 while luge took place on 20–21 February 2009. The track was a finalist for the 2012 FIL World Luge Championships
along with Altenberg, Germany
, at the 2008 FIL Congress in Calgary, Alberta, but the track withdrew its bid before the 28 June 2008 selection. During a 4–5 April 2009 weekend meeting of the FIL Commission at St. Leonhard, Austria, it was recommended that the Centre be host for the 2013 FIL World Luge Championships
. This was confirmed on 19–20 June 2009 at the 57th FIL Congress meeting in Liberec
, Czech Republic
.
Post-Olympic usage is a responsibility of the Whistler 2010 Sports Legacies which operates the Sliding Centre, Whistler Olympic Park, and the Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Village
. The goal of this organization is to promote the legacy of the 2010 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Paralympics
, promote healthy lifestyles and tourism in the British Columbia province, and offer revenue for the maintenance of the three facilities.
, Georgian
luger Nodar Kumaritashvili
suffered a crash during a training run exiting out of turn 16. Kumaritashvili was injured when he flew off the track and collided with a steel pole. He was going 143.3 km/h (89 mph) at the time of the crash. He died later that day from the injuries sustained in that crash. His accident came after other crashes during that week. This reignited concerns about the track's safety. Kumaritashvili was the first Olympic athlete to die at the Winter Olympics in training since 1992
and the first luger to die in a practice event at the Winter Olympics since Kazimierz Kay-Skrzypeski
of Great Britain was killed at the luge track
used for the 1964 Winter Olympics
in Innsbruck
. It was also luge's first fatality since 10 December 1975 when an Italian luger was killed. A joint statement was issued by the FIL, the IOC, and VANOC over Kumaritashvili's death. Training was suspended for the rest of that day. According to the Coroners Service of British Columbia and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
, the cause of Kumaritashvili's death was him coming out of turn 15 late and then not compensating before turn 16.
As a preventive measure, an extra 100 ft (30.5 m) of wall was added after the end of Turn 16, and the ice profile was changed. Also, the men's singles luge event start was moved from its start house to the one for both the women's singles and men's doubles event. Women's singles and men's doubles start was moved to the Junior start house of the track, located after turn 5. Germany's Natalie Geisenberger
complained that it was not a women's start but more of a Kinder ("children" in ) start. Her teammate Hüfner, who had the fastest speed on the two practice runs at 82.3 mph (132.4 km/h), stated that the new start position "does not help good starters like myself.". American Erin Hamlin
, the 2009 women's singles world champion
, stated the track was still demanding even after the distance was lessened from 1193 to 953 m (3,914 to 3,126.6 ft) and one was still hitting 80 mph (128.7 km/h).
During a 14 February 2010 interview with Reuters, FIL Secretary-General Svein Romstad stated that the federation considered cancelling the luge competition in the wake of Kumaritashvili's death two days earlier. Romstad stated that "[Kumaritashvili] ... made a mistake" on the crash though "any fatality is unnacceptable". Additionally, Romstad stated that the start houses were moved to their current locations "mostly for an emotional reason". Because of Kumaritashvili's death, the FIL is working with the Sochi 2014 Olympic Organizing Committee over making the Russian National Sliding Centre in Rzhanaya Polyana
slower in speed. Canada's Alex Gough
commented on 14 February (two days after Kumaritashvili's death) that "We’ve got the world championships here in a few years (2013) so hopefully we can actually have a race" instead of the start at the Junior start house.
On 18 February 2010, FIL President Fendt issued the following statement:
Kumaritashvili was buried in his hometown of Bakuriani
, on 20 February 2010. Georgian National Olympic Committee
president Gia Natsvlishvili
and Georgia president Mikheil Saakashvili
raised concern and anger toward the Sliding Centre's organizers that the safety concerns were not addressed.
's Violeta Strămăturaru
was knocked unconscious after hitting several walls during a training run. She was strapped to a backboard and placed on a stretcher though her arms were moving. Strămăturaru withdrew before the women's singles event.
In the first run of the men's doubles luge competition on 17 February 2010, Austria's team of Tobias Schiegl
and Markus Schiegl
survived a crash on turn 16 where they came in at too high of an elevation. Tobias tried to correct the oversteer only to have the cousins collide on the opposite side of the ice wall, causing both to go airborne momentarily. Neither suffered any injury.
Mihaela Chiras
of Romania suffered the only crash of ten actual competitive runs (four men single, four women single, and two doubles), and that was during the second run of the women's singles event. Each of the five days of luge competition was attended by a sold-out crowd of 12,000 spectators.
Event winners were Germany's Loch in men's singles, Germany's Hüfner in women's singles, and Austria's Andreas
and Wolfgang Linger
in doubles.
practice began down the full length of the track on 15 February 2010. It was the first time that had been done since Kumaritashvili's death three days earlier. Britain's Shelley Rudman
stated that "The IOC and VANOC have done all they can to make it a safe environment". Canada's Mellisa Hollingsworth had the fastest women's practice runs while her teammate Montgomery had the fastest men's practice runs. Montgomery and Hollingsworth also had the fastest practice times on both the 16th and the 17th. No crashes occurred during the two days of skeleton competitions.
Event winners were Montgomery in the men's and Britain's Amy Williams
in the women's.
practice began on 17 February 2010 with the two-man
event. Eight crashes among 57 runs took place that day. Three crashes occurred during the two-man practice session on 18 February 2010. Supplemental practice was offered on 19 February 2010 to both the two-woman
and four-man
events out of caution, and further preparation for both events that took place the following week.
For the first run on 20 February 2010, a sled from Australia
crashed out and did not finish, while a sled from Great Britain was disqualified when the sled's brakeman was ejected during the first run. Liechtenstein
's sled crashed out during the first run and finished, but did not start the second run. During the two-man event, runs three and four on 21 February 2010 were rescheduled to 16:00 PST
(00:00 UTC
on 22 February) for run three and 17:35 PST (01:35 UTC on the 22nd) for run four due to unseasonable warm weather. Temperatures reached 10 °C (50 °F) on the afternoon of the 20th and were expected to reach 12 °C (53.6 °F) on the afternoon of the 21st. No crashes occurred in the final two runs of the event. Germany's André Lange and Kevin Kuske
won the two-man event.
Reactions from bobsledders about the track during the two-man event varied from exciting to anxious to dangerous. The Associated Press
spoke to 13 of the 21 drivers who competed at the two-woman event on 23–24 February 2010 and the only one who did not feel safe on the track was Erin Pac
of the United States. The three German
drivers who competed in the two-woman event stated through a team spokeswoman that they had no safety concerns about the track.
Minor changes were made to the track on 22 February 2010 after bobsleigh four-man teams from Latvia
and Croatia
rolled over in supplementary practice. Following a meeting with 11 team captains, practice runs were postponed by the FIBT until later that day to adjust the shape of turn 11 so it would be easier for sleds to get through the rest of the track without crashing. FIBT spokesman Don Krone also stated that it was common that turn profiles were changed when it was being used by other sliding disciplines such as luge and skeleton.
After track alterations were done on 23 February 2010, the two fastest four-man practice times were done by Germany's Lange and the United States' Steven Holcomb
. Australia withdrew its four-man team on 23 February 2010 after two of its crew members suffered concussions from crashes sustained during track practice. Australia's chef de mission Ian Chesterman
stated that the decision was not taken lightly and was done on the side of safety.
In the two-woman event, defending world champion
Nicole Minichiello
of Britain had her sled flip over after turn 12 during the third run, but both Minichiello and her brakeman Gillian Cooke
walked away from the crash. Minichiello and Cooke decided not to start the final run. In the final run, Russia-2's sled crashed which kept them at their finishing position of 18th. Meanwhile, the Germany-2 sled of Cathleen Martini
and Romy Logsch
was in fourth place after the third run, but was disqualified after Martini crashed in turn 13 of the final run, causing Logsch to be ejected from the sled. Both Martini and Logsch walked away from the crash by themselves. Before this incident, Martini had never crashed before in her career. Canada's Kaillie Humphries
and Heather Moyse
won the event.
Lange had the fastest practice times in the four-man event on the 24th with the final two practices taking place on the 25th.
For the four-man event's first two runs on 26 February, defending world champion Holcomb recorded the fastest track times in both runs while defending Olympic champion Lange had the fastest start times. Russia-2 driven by Alexandr Zubkov, the defending four-man silver medalist and bronze medalist in the two-man event at these Games, crashed out in the first run when one of his steering ropes broke. Austria-1 and Slovakia-1 also crashed out in the first run, and neither sled started the second run with Russia-2. Second run crashes involved USA-2, Great Britain-1, and Japan-1. USA-2 did not start the third run. There were no crashes in the final two runs of the event. America's team of Holcomb, Steve Mesler, Curtis Tomasevicz
, and Justin Olsen
won the event.
already said that it is designed to be 6 to 9 km/h (3.7 to 5.6 mph) slower than The Whistler Sliding Centre. Sochi's Sliding Centre will be monitored via 3-D computer graphics and simulation
. The IOC has improved safety standards over the years such as lowering obstacles for the equestrian
three-day event, requiring protective head gear for boxing
and ice hockey
, and tightening qualification standards to preclude athletes not qualified for the event. FIBT President Storey wanted to wait to review safety of bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton until after the 2010 Games, stating that track designers needed to find a balance between challenges and dangers on the track. Track designer Gurgel told Sport Bild
that perhaps track walls should be raised 40 to 50 cm (15.7 to 19.7 in) on future courses though a risk-proof course may not be possible. According to VANOC, over 30,000 runs were made prior to the games with neither the FIBT nor the FIL issuing public danger warnings about the track. IOC President Jacques Rogge
stated that he "will do everything in my power that this should not happen again in the future".
The FIL published their reports in regards to Kumaritashvili's death following the FIL Commissions Meeting in St. Leonhard, for both sport and technical commissions on 9–11 April 2010. This report was prepared by Romstad and Claire DelNegro, FIL Vice-President Sport Artificial Track. The 20-page report was released by the FIL to the IOC on 12 April 2010 and was released on FIL's website to the public on 19 April 2010. Documents released in February 2011 showed that the speed of the course was a concern for several years before Kumaritashvili's death.
designated site. According to the Squamish, the area is referred to as a "Wild Spirit Place" or Kwekwayex Kwelh7aynexw while the Lil'oet
call the area A7x7ulmecw or "Spirited Ground". It represents the beating of the Thunderbird
's huge wings filled with thunder in the air.
Originally budgeted for C$55 million, the track's actual costs were C$105 million (€
68 million). The track is made of 350 MT (344.5 LT; 385.8 ST) of reinforced concrete that was applied using pressurized spraying to reach a maximum thickness of 6 in (15.2 cm). Additionally, the track contains 12 km (7.5 mi) of steel conduit, 600 awning
s, and 700 lights. A total of 350 track footings were used to set the track on its proper foundation. Forty percent of those footings were completed by July 2006. There are over 100 km (62.1 mi) of ammonia refrigeration piping used to keep the track frozen. Sloping and curves were contoured to within 1 to 3 mm (0.0393700787401575 to 0.118110236220472 in) of the planned design course. Ice thickness is 2 to 5 cm (0.78740157480315 to 2 in) that is maintained by hand. There are 36 on-track video camera
s and 42 "timing eyes" located at the Sliding Centre. The track also includes a control tower and administration buildings. There are two spectator overpasses (between turns 1 and 2, and turns 6 and 7) and three spectator underpasses (between turns 8 and 9, turns 11 and 12, and turns 15 and 16). It seated 11,650 spectators during the 2010 Games.
in the area. For energy efficiency, trees were retained to cast shade with weather protection and a shading system used to cover parts of the track. The track itself is painted white to maintain low temperatures while minimizing energy demand on the refrigeration system. Waste heat from the refrigeration plant is captured and reused to heat buildings on-site, and could provide other heat uses in the future. Any wood waste created from site clearing activities during venue construction was compost
ed for reuse. Other on-site buildings also followed similar green building design principles.
On 22 August 2006, VANOC targeted Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Canada by applying for "silver" green building certification for the 708 m² (7,620.8 sq ft) refrigeration plant building. The refrigeration plant received "gold" certification level on 2 February 2010.
Turn names for 4–6 and 8 were not given.
Track g-forces were expected to reach up to 5.02 for men's singles luge. Maximum speed was reached at 147.9 km/h (91.9 mph) in four-man bobsleigh during the certification process.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
bobsleigh
Bobsleigh
Bobsleigh or bobsled is a winter sport in which teams of two or four make timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sled that are combined to calculate the final score....
, luge
Luge
A Luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine and feet-first. Steering is done by flexing the sled's runners with the calf of each leg or exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21-25 kilograms for singles and 25-30 kilograms for doubles. Luge...
, and skeleton
Skeleton (sport)
Skeleton is a fast winter sliding sport in which an individual person rides a small sled down a frozen track while lying face down, during which athletes experience forces up to 5g. It originated in St. Moritz, Switzerland as a spin-off from the popular British sport of Cresta Sledding...
track located in Whistler, British Columbia
Whistler, British Columbia
Whistler is a Canadian resort town in the southern Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in the province of British Columbia, Canada, approximately north of Vancouver...
, that is 125 km (77.7 mi) north of Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
. The centre is part of the Whistler Blackcomb resort, which comprises two ski mountains separated by Fitzsimmons Creek
Fitzsimmons Creek
Fitzsimmons Creek is a large creek in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, having its origins at the Fitzsimmons Glacier in the Garibaldi Ranges of the Coast Mountains...
. Located on the lowermost slope of the northern mountain (Blackcomb Mountain), Whistler Sliding Centre hosted the bobsleigh
Bobsleigh
Bobsleigh or bobsled is a winter sport in which teams of two or four make timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sled that are combined to calculate the final score....
, luge
Luge
A Luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine and feet-first. Steering is done by flexing the sled's runners with the calf of each leg or exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21-25 kilograms for singles and 25-30 kilograms for doubles. Luge...
, and skeleton
Skeleton (sport)
Skeleton is a fast winter sliding sport in which an individual person rides a small sled down a frozen track while lying face down, during which athletes experience forces up to 5g. It originated in St. Moritz, Switzerland as a spin-off from the popular British sport of Cresta Sledding...
(an individual sport in which the racer slides down the track head first) competitions for the 2010 Winter Olympics
2010 Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
.
Design work started in late 2004 with construction taking place from June 2005 to December 2007. Bobsledders Pierre Lueders
Pierre Lueders
Pierre Fritz Lueders is a Canadian bobsledder who competed from 1990 to 2010. He piloted both two-man and four-man bobsleigh, retiring after the 2010 Winter Olympics...
and Justin Kripps
Justin Kripps
Justin Kripps is a Canadian bobsledder who has competed since 2006. He won his first Bobsleigh World Cup race in the men's four bob at the meeting in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, January 2008 alongside Pierre Lueders, Ken Kotyk and David Bissett.On December 19, 2007, Kripps and Lueders became the...
of Canada took the first run on the track on 19 December 2007. Certification took place in March 2008 with over 200 runs from six different start houses (the place where the sleds start their runs), and was approved both by the International Bobsleigh and Tobogganing Federation (FIBT) and the International Luge Federation (FIL). Training runs took place in late 2008 in preparation for the World Cup events in all three sports in early 2009. World Cup competitions were held in February 2009 for bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton. The top speed for all World Cup events set by German luger Felix Loch
Felix Loch
Felix Loch is a German luger and Olympic champion. He has been competing since 1995 and has been on the German national team since 2006. He won five medals at the FIL World Luge Championships with four golds and one silver...
at 153.98 km/h (95.7 mph). In late 2009, more training took place in preparation for the Winter Olympics.
On 12 February 2010, the day of the Olympic opening ceremonies
2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremony
The Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics was held on February 12, 2010 beginning at 6:00 pm PST at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This was the first Olympic opening ceremony to be held indoors...
, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
n luger Nodar Kumaritashvili
Nodar Kumaritashvili
Nodar David Kumaritashvili was a Georgian luger, who suffered a fatal crash during a training run for the 2010 Winter Olympics competition in Vancouver, Canada, on the day of the opening ceremony...
was killed during a training run while reportedly going 143.3 km/h (89 mph). This resulted in the men's singles
Luge at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Men's singles
The men's luge at the 2010 Winter Olympics took place on 13–14 February 2010 at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia. Germany's Felix Loch was the two-time defending world champion and won the gold medal with the fastest time in each of the four runs...
event being moved to the women's singles
Luge at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Women's singles
The women's luge at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada took place on 15–16 February at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia. Germany's Sylke Otto is the two-time defending Olympic champion. Otto retired midway through the 2006-07 season in January 2007 to pregnancy...
and men's doubles
Luge at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Doubles
The doubles luge event at the 2010 Winter Olympics was held on 17 February at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia. Twenty teams participated. Austrian brothers Andreas and Wolfgang Linger, the defending Olympic and European champions,. won the gold medal. The silver medal was...
start house while both the women's singles and men's doubles event were moved to the junior start house. During actual luge competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics, there were only two crashes, which resulted in one withdrawal. Skeleton races on 18–19 February had no crashes though two skeleton racers were disqualified for technical reasons. Bobsleigh competitions had crashes during all three events. This resulted in supplemental training for both the two-woman
Bobsleigh at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Two-woman
The two-woman bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia, on 20–21 February. The German team of Sandra Kiriasis and Anja Schneiderheinze were the defending Olympic champions in this event...
and the four-man
Bobsleigh at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Four-man
The four-man bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia, on 26–27 February. The German team of André Lange, René Hoppe, Kevin Kuske, and Martin Putze were the defending Olympic champion in this event...
event following crashes during the two-man
Bobsleigh at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Two-man
The two-man bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia on 20–21 February. The German team of André Lange and Kevin Kuske were the defending Olympic champions in this event. Switzerland's team of Ivo...
event. Modifications were made to the track after the two-man event to lessen the frequency of crashes as well. A 20-page report was released by the FIL to the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
(IOC) on 12 April 2010 and to the public on FIL's website on 19 April 2010 regarding Kumaritashvili's death. Safety concerns at Whistler have affected the track design for the Russian National Sliding Centre
Russian National Sliding Centre
The Russian National Sliding Centre is a bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track that will be located in Rzhanaya Polyana, Russia, located 60 km northeast of Sochi...
that will be used for the 2014 Winter Olympics
2014 Winter Olympics
The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially the XXII Olympic Winter Games, or the 22nd Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event scheduled to be celebrated from 7 to 23 February 2014, in Sochi, Russia with some events held in the resort town of Krasnaya Polyana. Both the Olympic and...
in Sochi
Sochi
Sochi is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains...
. This includes track simulation and mapping to reduce top speeds by 6 to 9 km/h (3.7 to 5.6 mph) for the Sochi track.
Constructed on part of First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
spiritual grounds, the track won two provincial concrete construction awards in 2008 while the refrigeration plant earned Canada's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
"gold" certification two years later.
Awarding and construction (2004–07)
At the 115th IOC Session held at PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
in 2003, Vancouver was chosen to host the 2010 Winter Olympics
2010 Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
over Pyongchang, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, and Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. On 15 November 2004, it was announced that Stantec Architecture Limited, which designed the 2002 Winter Olympic bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track
Utah Olympic Park bobsleigh/luge/skeleton track
The Utah Olympic Park Track is a bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track located in the Utah Olympic Park, near Park City, Utah, United States. During the 2002 Winter Olympics, held nearby in Salt Lake City, the track hosted the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton events...
in Park City, Utah
Park City, Utah
Park City is a town in Summit and Wasatch counties in the U.S. state of Utah. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City's east edge of Sugar House along Interstate 80. The population was 7,558 at the 2010 census...
, in the United States, would provide detail design and site master plan of the track. The company was advised by the German track engineering firm IBG. IBG had designed the tracks used in Oberhof
Oberhof bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track
The Oberhof bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track is a venue used for bobsled, luge and skeleton located in Oberhof, Germany.-History:Oberhof had been the home of sledding activities since 1905, mostly bobsleigh. In 1931, the facility hosted the first ever FIBT World Championships in the two-man...
, Germany, the 1988 Winter Olympics
1988 Winter Olympics
The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 13 to 28 February 1988. The host was selected in 1981 after having beat Falun, Sweden and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy...
in (Calgary
Canada Olympic Park bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track
The Canada Olympic Park bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track is a bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track located in Calgary, Canada. Part of Canada Olympic Park, it hosted the bobsleigh and luge competitions at the 1988 Winter Olympics...
) and the 2006 Winter Olympics
2006 Winter Olympics
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...
(Cesana Pariol
Cesana Pariol
Cesana Pariol was the venue for bobsled, luge and skeleton during the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The track, built for the games, is located in Cesana...
). The German firm is also the designer of the Russian National Sliding Centre, the venue for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Site construction of the facility began on 1 June 2005 following environmental approval from the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act
Canadian Environmental Assessment Act
The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, S.C. 1992, c. 37 is an Act of Parliament that was passed by the Government of Canada in 1992...
. Safety and security was then put in place on the site. During its peak of construction activities in the summer of 2006, more than 500 workers were involved both at the Sliding Centre and at the Whistler Nordic Venue (now Whistler Olympic Park
Whistler Olympic Park
The Whistler Olympic Park is the location of the Nordic events facilities for the 2010 Winter Olympics and is located in the Madeley Creek basin in the Callaghan Valley, west of Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. The facility hosted the biathlon, cross-country skiing, nordic combined, and ski...
). A core group of 60 workers was involved with track construction from June 2005 to December 2007. Basic track construction was completed in November 2007 though fit-out and testing continued into 2008.
First testing and certification (2007–08)
The first run was on 19 December 2007 with Canadian bobsledder Pierre Lueders and his brakeman Justin Kripps starting at the Junior Start house (Location where the sliders start their run on the track) 520 m (1,706 ft) down the 1450 m (4,757.2 ft) track. A total of six runs were made under the auspices of the FIBT. The Canadian Luge Association opened a branch at the track in February 2008. Luge tests occurred in late February 2008 and among the participants were Tatjana HüfnerTatjana Hüfner
Tatjana Hüfner is a German luger who is the current Olympic Champion and has competed since 2003. She won the bronze medal in the women's singles at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin...
(Germany), Erin Hamlin
Erin Hamlin
Erin Hamlin is an American luger who has competed since 2005. She won the gold medal in the women's singles event at the 2009 FIL World Luge Championships in Lake Placid, New York; this marked the first time in 99 races that a German woman was not the top finisher.Hamlin finished 12th in the...
(United States), Armin Zöggeler
Armin Zöggeler
Armin Zöggeler is a luger and double Olympic champion who is an Italian national. He is one of the most successful men in the sport, nicknamed Il Cannibale , for his notable series of victories, or The Iceblood Champion, for his always cold, rational approach to the races.Zöggeler was born in...
(Italy), and Regan Lauscher
Regan Lauscher
Regan Lauscher is a Canadian luger. Competing in three Winter Olympics, she earned her best finish of tenth in the women's singles event at Turin in 2006....
(Canada). Bobsleigh participants during certification in March 2008 included Sandra Kiriasis
Sandra Kiriasis
Sandra Kiriasis is a German bobsledder who has competed since 2000.At the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City she won silver in the two-woman event together with teammate Ulrike Holzner...
(Germany), Lueders (Canada), and Shauna Rohbock
Shauna Rohbock
Shauna L. Rohbock is a Specialist in the U.S. Army National Guard, an Olympic medal-winning bobsledder, and former professional soccer player....
(United States) while skeleton participants included Kristan Bromley
Kristan Bromley
Kristan Bromley is a British skeleton racer who has competed since 1996. He won the gold medal in the men's event at the 2008 FIBT World Championships in Altenberg, Germany...
(Great Britain), Kerstin Jürgens
Kerstin Jürgens
Kerstin Szymkowiak is a German skeleton racer who has competed since 2002...
(Szymkowiak since summer 2008 – Germany), and Jon Montgomery
Jon Montgomery
Jonathan Riley "Jon" Montgomery is a Canadian skeleton racer who has competed since 2006. He won the Gold Medal in the men's skeleton event at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.-Career:...
(Canada). Over 200 runs were taken from six different starting positions on the track.
Praise was given both by the FIBT and the FIL over the successful certification of the track. The Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) reviewed the recommendations made from both the FIBT and the FIL to fine tune the track. Canadian teams continued testing and training at the track until 20 March 2008. A total of 2155 runs (335 bobsleigh, 1077 luge, and 743 skeleton) took place at the track with a total of 15 crashes. Final track inspection by the FIL Executive Board took place 25–27 September 2008 before the International Training Week later that year.
2008–09 Luge World Cup, including training
International Training Week for luge took place at the track 7–15 November 2008. A total of 2482 runs took place during the training with several injuries occurring, most notably Loch, the 2008 men's singles world championFIL World Luge Championships 2008
The FIL World Luge Championships 2008 took place January 21-27, 2008 at the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track in Oberhof, Germany for the third time after having hosted the event in 1973 and 1985. The relay competition took the place of the team event that had been held at every world...
, who injured his shoulder. In a 9 December 2008 press release, the Centre was continuing certification by adding protections on the track against crashes and weather. FIL President Josef Fendt
Josef Fendt
Josef Fendt is the current president of the Fédération Internationale de Luge de Course . He was a West German-German luger who competed from the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s...
stated that the track's speed was too high with top speeds reaching 149 km/h (92.6 mph) during training. From the 2482 runs executed during the International Training week for luge, there were 73 crashes, a crash rate of three percent which was normal during new track testing. Three lugers, including Loch, were sent to the hospital, but were later released. Italy's Zöggeler stated that "The track can be tackled." and "does not see big problems for the athletes" while Fendt called for the top track speed for future tracks to be lowered to 135 or where possible. For the 2008–09 World Cup season at the Centre, 15115 runs were made for bobsleigh (2153), luge (9672), and skeleton (3290). After the World Cup event on 20–21 February 2009, Austria's Andreas Linger
Andreas Linger
Andreas Linger is an Austrian luger who has competed internationally since 2000. He and his younger brother Wolfgang began luging at a very young age, and did their first doubles run when they were 14...
described the track as "fast, incredibly fast."
Loch stated that luge speeds for men's singles reached 100 km/h (62.1 mph) before turn three at the women's singles and men's doubles' start house. A total of 2818 runs for bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton were made at the track during the four-week time period for the World Cup events. FIL President Fendt stated that "[my] technical delegate told me this week that the Games could start tomorrow and the track would be ready." and he appreciated the whole Whistler Sliding Centre At the 2008–09 World Cup season finale, 135 athletes participated (67 men, 42 women, and 26 doubles) though 144 athletes from 23 nations were registered. During the Luge World Cup event that weekend, 186 runs took place with 16 crashes.
2008–09 Bobsleigh and Skeleton World Cup and training
The first bobsleigh and skeleton training week took place on 25–31 January 2009 to prepare for their respective World Cup events on 5–7 February 2009. A total of 250 competitors from 24 nations took part in the World Cup practice for all five events (Bobsleigh two-man, bobsleigh two-woman, bobsleigh four-man, and men's and women's skeleton). Competition and weather affected testing and World Cup runs for the two-week time period. A team of 118 personnel and 276 volunteers worked consecutive weeks at the Training Week and World Cup events. Track director Craig Lehto stated that the volunteer efforts were similar to what he had seen both at the 2002 Winter Olympics2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
in Salt Lake City and the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
. The final two days of competition had 3000 total spectators. Medical services, led by VANOC and FIBT medical director Dr. David McDonagh, tested themselves with first responder care and mock scenarios that included athlete extraction from the sled if the accident was severe enough. These services were tested again during the Luge World Cup competition on 20–21 February 2009. A total of 15,000 spectators attended all five days for the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton World Cup events, all sold out. FIBT President Robert H. Storey
Robert H. Storey
Robert H. Storey is a Canadian bobsledder who competed from the mid 1960s to the early 1970s who later became a businessman and chairman to two communication companies in Canada...
stated that the Centre "... is fast, technical, demanding, and interesting.". A total of 235 athletes participated in the 2008–09 World Cup event (92 four-man, 54 two-man, 40 two-woman, 28 men's skeleton, and 21 women's skeleton).
2009–10 World Cups, including training
A paid training session took place 27 October - 7 November 2009 at the Centre for bobsleigh teams in preparation for the 2010 Games. On 9–15 November 2009, a second International Training Week for luge took place in preparation for the 2010 Games with the participation of 156 athletes from 27 nations. Venezuela's Werner HoegerWerner Hoeger
Werner Hoeger is a professor emeritus of exercise science at Boise State University. He has published 51 editions of Fitness & Wellness college textbooks. He is one of the most widely read fitness and wellness college authors in the United States...
was knocked unconscious during a practice run on 13 November 2009 and was denied any further make-up runs. During training that week, Hoeger expressed concern about the safety of the track. These concerns called for the resignation of track director Ed Moffat, father of lugers Chris
Chris Moffat
Chris Moffat is a Canadian luger who has competed since 2000. Competing in three Winter Olympics, he earned his best finish of fifth in the men's doubles event at Salt Lake City in 2002....
and Mike, to offer equal runs to all lugers in future events, to have Canada forfeit any extra training runs that were negotiated for the 2014 Winter Olympics, and for the Canadian Luge Association be reprimanded for unethical actions and not providing a safe sliding environment, especially after speeds were 10 mph (16.1 km/h) higher than expected. Canadian Luge Association officials declined to comment though they stated to the New York Times that the lugers received up to three times the amount of training runs offered in the run-up to the 2006 Winter Olympics
2006 Winter Olympics
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...
at Cesana Pariol
Cesana Pariol
Cesana Pariol was the venue for bobsled, luge and skeleton during the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The track, built for the games, is located in Cesana...
.
Team Canada (luge) did not participate in the World Cup
2009–10 Luge World Cup
The 2009–10 Luge World Cup was a multi race tournament over a season for luge. The season started 17 November 2009 in Calgary, Canada and ended 31 January 2010 in Cesana, Italy. The World Cup was organised by the FIL and sponsored by Viessmann...
event in Lillehammer
Lillehammer
is a town and municipality in Oppland county, Norway, globally known for hosting the 1994 Winter Olympics. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of May 2011, the population of the town of Lillehammer was...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
during 12–13 December 2009 to train at the Sliding Centre and to compete at the Canadian National Championships that took place on 17 December 2009. A training restriction went into effect on 31 December 2009 where only host nation Canada and athletes from developing nations were allowed to train before the 2010 Games. For the 2009–10 season, there were a total of 15736 runs among bobsleigh (2512), luge (8794), and skeleton (4070) with a total of 115 crashes among the three sliding disciplines.
Public opening and post-Olympic usage
The Centre's official website was launched in late June 2008. Public self-guided walking tours ran from 3 July through 31 August 2008. The cost to the public was 5 Canadian dollarCanadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
s (C$5) with children under 12 admitted free. World Cup competition for bobsleigh and skeleton took place on 2–8 February 2009 while luge took place on 20–21 February 2009. The track was a finalist for the 2012 FIL World Luge Championships
FIL World Luge Championships 2012
The FIL World Luge Championships 2012 will take place under the auspices of the International Luge Federation at the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track in Altenberg, Germany for the second time after having hosted the World championships in 1996...
along with Altenberg, Germany
Altenberg, Germany
Altenberg is a town in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated in the Ore Mountains, close to the border with the Czech Republic, 15 km northwest of Teplice, and 32 km south of Dresden....
, at the 2008 FIL Congress in Calgary, Alberta, but the track withdrew its bid before the 28 June 2008 selection. During a 4–5 April 2009 weekend meeting of the FIL Commission at St. Leonhard, Austria, it was recommended that the Centre be host for the 2013 FIL World Luge Championships
FIL World Luge Championships 2013
The FIL World Luge Championships 2013 will take place under the auspices of the International Luge Federation at the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. The facility was chosen at the 57th FIL Congress in Liberec, Czech Republic on 20 June 2009. Whistler was...
. This was confirmed on 19–20 June 2009 at the 57th FIL Congress meeting in Liberec
Liberec
Liberec is a city in the Czech Republic. Located on the Lusatian Neisse and surrounded by the Jizera Mountains and Ještěd-Kozákov Ridge, it is the fifth-largest city in the Czech Republic....
, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
.
Post-Olympic usage is a responsibility of the Whistler 2010 Sports Legacies which operates the Sliding Centre, Whistler Olympic Park, and the Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Village
Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Village
The Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Village is a 2010 Winter Olympics facility in the resort town of Whistler, British Columbia. The Olympic Village is considered one of Whistler's legacy projects, in that it will be used after the Olympics to help house and train Canadian athletes. Whistler is...
. The goal of this organization is to promote the legacy of the 2010 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Paralympics
2010 Winter Paralympics
The 2010 Winter Paralympics, officially the X Paralympic Winter Games, or the 10th Winter Paralympics, were held in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia, Canada from March 12 to 21, 2010. The Opening Ceremony took place in BC Place Stadium in Vancouver and the Closing Ceremony in Whistler...
, promote healthy lifestyles and tourism in the British Columbia province, and offer revenue for the maintenance of the three facilities.
Nodar Kumaritashvili
On 12 February 2010, hours before the opening ceremony for the 2010 Winter Olympics2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremony
The Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics was held on February 12, 2010 beginning at 6:00 pm PST at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This was the first Olympic opening ceremony to be held indoors...
, Georgian
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
luger Nodar Kumaritashvili
Nodar Kumaritashvili
Nodar David Kumaritashvili was a Georgian luger, who suffered a fatal crash during a training run for the 2010 Winter Olympics competition in Vancouver, Canada, on the day of the opening ceremony...
suffered a crash during a training run exiting out of turn 16. Kumaritashvili was injured when he flew off the track and collided with a steel pole. He was going 143.3 km/h (89 mph) at the time of the crash. He died later that day from the injuries sustained in that crash. His accident came after other crashes during that week. This reignited concerns about the track's safety. Kumaritashvili was the first Olympic athlete to die at the Winter Olympics in training since 1992
1992 Winter Olympics
The 1992 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 8 to 23 February 1992 in Albertville, France. They were the last Winter Olympics to be held the same year as the Summer Olympics, and the first where the Winter Paralympics...
and the first luger to die in a practice event at the Winter Olympics since Kazimierz Kay-Skrzypeski
Kazimierz Kay-Skrzypeski
Kazimierz Kay-Skrzypecki was a Polish-born British luge racer.Kay-Skrzypecki was a former pilot in the Royal Air Force. He died during one of the training runs for the first Olympic luge competition at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck. Three days later, on 26 January 1964, Australian...
of Great Britain was killed at the luge track
Igls bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track
The Olympic Sliding Centre Innsburck is a venue for bobsleigh, luge and skeleton located in Igls, Austria . The most recent version of the track was completed in 1975 and is the first permanent, combination artificially refrigerated bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track, serving as a model for other...
used for the 1964 Winter Olympics
1964 Winter Olympics
The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964...
in Innsbruck
Innsbruck
- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...
. It was also luge's first fatality since 10 December 1975 when an Italian luger was killed. A joint statement was issued by the FIL, the IOC, and VANOC over Kumaritashvili's death. Training was suspended for the rest of that day. According to the Coroners Service of British Columbia and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
, the cause of Kumaritashvili's death was him coming out of turn 15 late and then not compensating before turn 16.
As a preventive measure, an extra 100 ft (30.5 m) of wall was added after the end of Turn 16, and the ice profile was changed. Also, the men's singles luge event start was moved from its start house to the one for both the women's singles and men's doubles event. Women's singles and men's doubles start was moved to the Junior start house of the track, located after turn 5. Germany's Natalie Geisenberger
Natalie Geisenberger
Natalie Geisenberger is a German luger. She won a bronze medal in the women's singles event at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver....
complained that it was not a women's start but more of a Kinder ("children" in ) start. Her teammate Hüfner, who had the fastest speed on the two practice runs at 82.3 mph (132.4 km/h), stated that the new start position "does not help good starters like myself.". American Erin Hamlin
Erin Hamlin
Erin Hamlin is an American luger who has competed since 2005. She won the gold medal in the women's singles event at the 2009 FIL World Luge Championships in Lake Placid, New York; this marked the first time in 99 races that a German woman was not the top finisher.Hamlin finished 12th in the...
, the 2009 women's singles world champion
FIL World Luge Championships 2009
The FIL World Luge Championships 2009 ran on 1–8 February 2009 at the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track in Lake Placid, New York, United States for the second time after having hosted the event in 1983...
, stated the track was still demanding even after the distance was lessened from 1193 to 953 m (3,914 to 3,126.6 ft) and one was still hitting 80 mph (128.7 km/h).
During a 14 February 2010 interview with Reuters, FIL Secretary-General Svein Romstad stated that the federation considered cancelling the luge competition in the wake of Kumaritashvili's death two days earlier. Romstad stated that "[Kumaritashvili] ... made a mistake" on the crash though "any fatality is unnacceptable". Additionally, Romstad stated that the start houses were moved to their current locations "mostly for an emotional reason". Because of Kumaritashvili's death, the FIL is working with the Sochi 2014 Olympic Organizing Committee over making the Russian National Sliding Centre in Rzhanaya Polyana
Rzhanaya Polyana
Rzhanaya Polyana is a natural area in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located not far from Krasnaya Polyana.Home of the to be constructed Russian National Sliding Centre, it will host the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton events for the 2014 Winter Olympics held in Sochi....
slower in speed. Canada's Alex Gough
Alex Gough (luger)
Alex Gough is a Canadian luger who has competed since 2002. She won a bronze medal in the women's singles event at the FIL World Luge Championships 2011 in Cesana, the first ever for a Canadian woman and only the second overall .Gough also competed in two Winter...
commented on 14 February (two days after Kumaritashvili's death) that "We’ve got the world championships here in a few years (2013) so hopefully we can actually have a race" instead of the start at the Junior start house.
On 18 February 2010, FIL President Fendt issued the following statement:
Kumaritashvili was buried in his hometown of Bakuriani
Bakuriani
Bakuriani is a skiing resort in the Borjomi district of Georgia. It is located on the northern slope of the Trialeti Range, at an elevation of 1,700 meters above sea level....
, on 20 February 2010. Georgian National Olympic Committee
Georgian National Olympic Committee
The Georgian National Olympic Committee is a Georgian national constituent of the worldwide Olympic movement. It is an umbrella organization for 12 regional bodies, the Georgian Olympic Academy, the Georgian Olympians’ Association, and the Olympic Museum.The GNOC was established on October 6,...
president Gia Natsvlishvili
Gia Natsvlishvili
Gia Natsvlishvili is a Georgian judoka who has been president of the Georgian National Olympic Committee since 2008.Prior to that, he was a vice president of the Georgian Judo Federation....
and Georgia president Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili is a Georgian politician, the third and current President of Georgia and leader of the United National Movement Party.Involved in the national politics since 1995, Saakashvili became president on 25 January 2004 after President Eduard Shevardnadze resigned in a November 2003...
raised concern and anger toward the Sliding Centre's organizers that the safety concerns were not addressed.
Luge
On 11 February 2010, RomaniaRomania at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Romania participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Twenty-nine athletes have qualified for the Olympiad. The Romanian flag was carried by Éva Tófalvi during the opening ceremonies.- Alpine skiing:...
's Violeta Strămăturaru
Violeta Strămăturaru
Violeta Strămăturaru is a Romanian luger who has competed since 2001. Her older sister Raluca Strămăturaru is also a luger.Strămăturaru best Luge World Cup season finish was 32nd in women's singles in 2008-09. She qualified for the 2010 Winter Olympics...
was knocked unconscious after hitting several walls during a training run. She was strapped to a backboard and placed on a stretcher though her arms were moving. Strămăturaru withdrew before the women's singles event.
In the first run of the men's doubles luge competition on 17 February 2010, Austria's team of Tobias Schiegl
Tobias Schiegl
Tobias Schiegl is an Austrian luger who competed from 1993 to 2010. He won fourteen medals at the FIL World Luge Championships with five golds , five silvers , and four bronzes Tobias Schiegl (born October 5, 1973 in Kufstein) is an Austrian luger who competed from 1993 to 2010. He won fourteen...
and Markus Schiegl
Markus Schiegl
Markus Schiegl is an Austrian luger who has competed from 1987 to 2010. He won fourteen medals at the FIL World Luge Championships with five golds , five silvers , and four bronzes Markus Schiegl (born 07.06.1975 in Kufstein) is an Austrian luger who has competed from 1987 to 2010. He won fourteen...
survived a crash on turn 16 where they came in at too high of an elevation. Tobias tried to correct the oversteer only to have the cousins collide on the opposite side of the ice wall, causing both to go airborne momentarily. Neither suffered any injury.
Mihaela Chiras
Mihaela Chiras
Mihaela Chiras is a Romanian luger who has competed since 2005. Her best finish at the FIL World Luge Championships was 28th in the women's singles event at Oberhof in 2008....
of Romania suffered the only crash of ten actual competitive runs (four men single, four women single, and two doubles), and that was during the second run of the women's singles event. Each of the five days of luge competition was attended by a sold-out crowd of 12,000 spectators.
Event winners were Germany's Loch in men's singles, Germany's Hüfner in women's singles, and Austria's Andreas
Andreas Linger
Andreas Linger is an Austrian luger who has competed internationally since 2000. He and his younger brother Wolfgang began luging at a very young age, and did their first doubles run when they were 14...
and Wolfgang Linger
Wolfgang Linger
Wolfgang Linger is an Austrian luger who has competed internationally since 2000. As young children, he and his older brother Andreas learned to luge on a former Olympic luge track, and at age 14 began competing as a doubles team for the first time...
in doubles.
Skeleton
The first skeletonSkeleton at the 2010 Winter Olympics
The skeleton competition of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics was held at Whistler Sliding Centre. The events were held between the 18 and 19 February 2010...
practice began down the full length of the track on 15 February 2010. It was the first time that had been done since Kumaritashvili's death three days earlier. Britain's Shelley Rudman
Shelley Rudman
Shelley Rudman is a British Olympic athlete. She won a silver medal at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in skeleton; the only medal for Great Britain at the games...
stated that "The IOC and VANOC have done all they can to make it a safe environment". Canada's Mellisa Hollingsworth had the fastest women's practice runs while her teammate Montgomery had the fastest men's practice runs. Montgomery and Hollingsworth also had the fastest practice times on both the 16th and the 17th. No crashes occurred during the two days of skeleton competitions.
Event winners were Montgomery in the men's and Britain's Amy Williams
Amy Williams
Amy Joy Williams MBE is an English skeleton racer and Olympic gold medallist. Originally a runner, she began training in skeleton after trying the sport on a push-start track at the University of Bath...
in the women's.
Bobsleigh
BobsleighBobsleigh at the 2010 Winter Olympics
The bobsleigh competition of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre between 20 and 27 February 2010.-Medal table:-Events:Three bobsleigh events were held at Vancouver 2010:- Competition schedule :...
practice began on 17 February 2010 with the two-man
Bobsleigh at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Two-man
The two-man bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia on 20–21 February. The German team of André Lange and Kevin Kuske were the defending Olympic champions in this event. Switzerland's team of Ivo...
event. Eight crashes among 57 runs took place that day. Three crashes occurred during the two-man practice session on 18 February 2010. Supplemental practice was offered on 19 February 2010 to both the two-woman
Bobsleigh at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Two-woman
The two-woman bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia, on 20–21 February. The German team of Sandra Kiriasis and Anja Schneiderheinze were the defending Olympic champions in this event...
and four-man
Bobsleigh at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Four-man
The four-man bobsleigh competition at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, was held at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Whistler, British Columbia, on 26–27 February. The German team of André Lange, René Hoppe, Kevin Kuske, and Martin Putze were the defending Olympic champion in this event...
events out of caution, and further preparation for both events that took place the following week.
For the first run on 20 February 2010, a sled from Australia
Australia at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Australia participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. A team of forty athletes was selected to compete in eleven sports...
crashed out and did not finish, while a sled from Great Britain was disqualified when the sled's brakeman was ejected during the first run. Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Liechtenstein participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.- Alpine skiing:*Tina Weirather - Did not compete due to injury suffered on January 23, 2010.- Bobsleigh:*Benedikt Lampert...
's sled crashed out during the first run and finished, but did not start the second run. During the two-man event, runs three and four on 21 February 2010 were rescheduled to 16:00 PST
Pacific Time Zone
The Pacific Time Zone observes standard time by subtracting eight hours from Coordinated Universal Time . The clock time in this zone is based on the mean solar time of the 120th meridian west of the Greenwich Observatory. During daylight saving time, its time offset is UTC-7.In the United States...
(00:00 UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
on 22 February) for run three and 17:35 PST (01:35 UTC on the 22nd) for run four due to unseasonable warm weather. Temperatures reached 10 °C (50 °F) on the afternoon of the 20th and were expected to reach 12 °C (53.6 °F) on the afternoon of the 21st. No crashes occurred in the final two runs of the event. Germany's André Lange and Kevin Kuske
Kevin Kuske
Kevin Kuske is a German bobsledder who has competed since 1999. Competing in three Winter Olympics, he has four gold medals and one silver medal....
won the two-man event.
Reactions from bobsledders about the track during the two-man event varied from exciting to anxious to dangerous. The Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
spoke to 13 of the 21 drivers who competed at the two-woman event on 23–24 February 2010 and the only one who did not feel safe on the track was Erin Pac
Erin Pac
Erin Pac is an American bobsledder who has competed since 2002. She won two medals in the mixed bobsleigh-skeleton team event at the FIBT World Championships with a silver in 2007 and a bronze in 2008....
of the United States. The three German
Germany at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Germany participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. 153 athletes represented Germany, entering all 15 sports. Figure skater Sarah Hecken was the youngest team member, while Curling European Champion Andrea Schöpp was the oldest at 44...
drivers who competed in the two-woman event stated through a team spokeswoman that they had no safety concerns about the track.
Minor changes were made to the track on 22 February 2010 after bobsleigh four-man teams from Latvia
Latvia at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Latvia participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with 58 athletes in 9 sports, which tied the biggest Latvian delegation to the Olympics ever....
and Croatia
Croatia at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Croatia participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The Croatian delegation consisted of nineteen athletes in four sports.- Medalists :- Alpine Skiing :Croatia qualified ten alpine skiers...
rolled over in supplementary practice. Following a meeting with 11 team captains, practice runs were postponed by the FIBT until later that day to adjust the shape of turn 11 so it would be easier for sleds to get through the rest of the track without crashing. FIBT spokesman Don Krone also stated that it was common that turn profiles were changed when it was being used by other sliding disciplines such as luge and skeleton.
After track alterations were done on 23 February 2010, the two fastest four-man practice times were done by Germany's Lange and the United States' Steven Holcomb
Steven Holcomb
Steven Holcomb is an American bobsledder who has competed since 1998. At the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, he finished sixth in the four-man event and 14th in the two-man event...
. Australia withdrew its four-man team on 23 February 2010 after two of its crew members suffered concussions from crashes sustained during track practice. Australia's chef de mission Ian Chesterman
Ian Chesterman
Ian Chesterman is a member of the Australian Olympic Committee and an Australian Winter Olympic administrator.He has been the Chef de Mission at the 1998 Nagano, 2002 Salt Lake City and 2006 Torino Winter Olympics...
stated that the decision was not taken lightly and was done on the side of safety.
In the two-woman event, defending world champion
FIBT World Championships 2009
The FIBT World Championships 2009, officially known as the Bauhaus FIBT Bobsleigh & Skeleton World Championships, 20 February to 1 March 2009 at the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track in Lake Placid, New York for the ninth time, doing so previously in 1949, 1961, 1969, 1973, 1978, 1983, 1997 , and...
Nicole Minichiello
Nicole Minichiello
Nicola Minichiello born Nicola Gautier on March 21, 1978 is a British bobsledder who has competed since 2001. She has won two medals in the two-woman event at the FIBT World Championships winning a silver in and making history with a gold in by becoming the first British female Bobsleigh Driver...
of Britain had her sled flip over after turn 12 during the third run, but both Minichiello and her brakeman Gillian Cooke
Gillian Cooke
Gillian Cooke is a Scottish athlete and bobsledder.Gillian Cooke was born and brought up in Edinburgh. Educated at George Watson's College, she began her sporting career in track and field with Edinburgh Southern Harriers. In 2001, she took 4th place in the triple jump at the Commonwealth Youth...
walked away from the crash. Minichiello and Cooke decided not to start the final run. In the final run, Russia-2's sled crashed which kept them at their finishing position of 18th. Meanwhile, the Germany-2 sled of Cathleen Martini
Cathleen Martini
Cathleen Martini is a German bobsledder who has competed since 2000. She won four medals in the two-woman event at the FIBT World Championships with two silvers and two bronzes ....
and Romy Logsch
Romy Logsch
Romy Logsch is a German bobsledder who has competed since 2006. -Career:She won two gold medals in the two-woman event at the FIBT World Championships, earning them in 2007 and 2008...
was in fourth place after the third run, but was disqualified after Martini crashed in turn 13 of the final run, causing Logsch to be ejected from the sled. Both Martini and Logsch walked away from the crash by themselves. Before this incident, Martini had never crashed before in her career. Canada's Kaillie Humphries
Kaillie Humphries
Kaillie Humphries is a Canadian bobsledder. Humphries has competed since 2004 and currently slides with Heather Moyse as her brakeman...
and Heather Moyse
Heather Moyse
Heather Moyse is a Canadian athlete, representing Canada in international competition as a bobsledder and rugby union player, and competing at the Canadian intercollegiate level in rugby, soccer and track and field.-Awards:...
won the event.
Lange had the fastest practice times in the four-man event on the 24th with the final two practices taking place on the 25th.
For the four-man event's first two runs on 26 February, defending world champion Holcomb recorded the fastest track times in both runs while defending Olympic champion Lange had the fastest start times. Russia-2 driven by Alexandr Zubkov, the defending four-man silver medalist and bronze medalist in the two-man event at these Games, crashed out in the first run when one of his steering ropes broke. Austria-1 and Slovakia-1 also crashed out in the first run, and neither sled started the second run with Russia-2. Second run crashes involved USA-2, Great Britain-1, and Japan-1. USA-2 did not start the third run. There were no crashes in the final two runs of the event. America's team of Holcomb, Steve Mesler, Curtis Tomasevicz
Curtis Tomasevicz
Curtis Tomasevicz is an American former college football player for the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers, and bobsledder who has competed since 2004...
, and Justin Olsen
Justin Olsen
Justin Olsen is an American bobsledder who has competed since 2008. He won two medals at the 2009 FIBT World Championships in Lake Placid, New York with a gold in the four-man and a bronze in the mixed team events....
won the event.
Overall safety concerns
Kumaritashvili's death raised concerns about athlete safety at the Winter Olympics. As of 21 February 2010, there were 30 crashes in bobsleigh and luge at the Sliding Centre. Debate was raised on tightening qualification standards in weeding out unqualified athletes, in requiring a large number of training runs, in slowing down the sliding tracks, or in combining the three. The Russian National Sliding Centre planned for the bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton events at the 2014 Winter Olympics has not been built though organizersSochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Organizing Committee
The Organizing Committee of the XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympic Winter Games of 2014 in Sochi is the organization responsible for the 2014 Winter Olympics and 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia...
already said that it is designed to be 6 to 9 km/h (3.7 to 5.6 mph) slower than The Whistler Sliding Centre. Sochi's Sliding Centre will be monitored via 3-D computer graphics and simulation
Computer simulation
A computer simulation, a computer model, or a computational model is a computer program, or network of computers, that attempts to simulate an abstract model of a particular system...
. The IOC has improved safety standards over the years such as lowering obstacles for the equestrian
Equestrian at the Summer Olympics
Equestrianism made its Summer Olympics debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. It disappeared until 1912, but has appeared at every Summer Olympic Games since. The current Olympic equestrian disciplines are Dressage, Eventing, and Jumping...
three-day event, requiring protective head gear for boxing
Boxing at the Summer Olympics
Boxing has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since its introduction to the program at the 1904 Summer Olympics, except for the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, because Swedish law banned the sport at the time. The 2008 Summer Olympics was the final games with boxing as a male only event...
and ice hockey
Ice hockey at the Olympic Games
Ice hockey tournaments have been staged at the Olympic Games since 1920. The men's tournament was introduced at the 1920 Summer Olympics and was transferred permanently to the Winter Olympic Games programme in 1924. The women's tournament was first held at the 1998 Winter Olympics...
, and tightening qualification standards to preclude athletes not qualified for the event. FIBT President Storey wanted to wait to review safety of bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton until after the 2010 Games, stating that track designers needed to find a balance between challenges and dangers on the track. Track designer Gurgel told Sport Bild
Sport Bild
Sport Bild is a German sports weekly published every Wednesday. According to its publisher it is Europe's biggest sports magazine with a circulation of almost half million copies....
that perhaps track walls should be raised 40 to 50 cm (15.7 to 19.7 in) on future courses though a risk-proof course may not be possible. According to VANOC, over 30,000 runs were made prior to the games with neither the FIBT nor the FIL issuing public danger warnings about the track. IOC President Jacques Rogge
Jacques Rogge
Jacques Rogge, Count Rogge , is a Belgian sports bureaucrat. He is the eighth and current President of the International Olympic Committee .-Life and career:...
stated that he "will do everything in my power that this should not happen again in the future".
The FIL published their reports in regards to Kumaritashvili's death following the FIL Commissions Meeting in St. Leonhard, for both sport and technical commissions on 9–11 April 2010. This report was prepared by Romstad and Claire DelNegro, FIL Vice-President Sport Artificial Track. The 20-page report was released by the FIL to the IOC on 12 April 2010 and was released on FIL's website to the public on 19 April 2010. Documents released in February 2011 showed that the speed of the course was a concern for several years before Kumaritashvili's death.
Track technical details
Construction
This venue was constructed on a First NationsFirst Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
designated site. According to the Squamish, the area is referred to as a "Wild Spirit Place" or Kwekwayex Kwelh7aynexw while the Lil'oet
Lillooet Tribal Council
The Lillooet Tribal Council is the official English name of the largest tribal council of what is also known as the St'at'imc Nation, though not including all governments of St'at'imc peoples - the term St'at'imc Nation has another context of all St'at'imc peoples, not just those within this tribal...
call the area A7x7ulmecw or "Spirited Ground". It represents the beating of the Thunderbird
Thunderbird (mythology)
The Thunderbird is a legendary creature in certain North American indigenous peoples' history and culture. It is considered a "supernatural" bird of power and strength...
's huge wings filled with thunder in the air.
Originally budgeted for C$55 million, the track's actual costs were C$105 million (€
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
68 million). The track is made of 350 MT (344.5 LT; 385.8 ST) of reinforced concrete that was applied using pressurized spraying to reach a maximum thickness of 6 in (15.2 cm). Additionally, the track contains 12 km (7.5 mi) of steel conduit, 600 awning
Awning
An awning or overhang is a secondary covering attached to the exterior wall of a building. It is typically composed of canvas woven of acrylic, cotton or polyester yarn, or vinyl laminated to polyester fabric that is stretched tightly over a light structure of aluminium, iron or steel, possibly...
s, and 700 lights. A total of 350 track footings were used to set the track on its proper foundation. Forty percent of those footings were completed by July 2006. There are over 100 km (62.1 mi) of ammonia refrigeration piping used to keep the track frozen. Sloping and curves were contoured to within 1 to 3 mm (0.0393700787401575 to 0.118110236220472 in) of the planned design course. Ice thickness is 2 to 5 cm (0.78740157480315 to 2 in) that is maintained by hand. There are 36 on-track video camera
Video camera
A video camera is a camera used for electronic motion picture acquisition, initially developed by the television industry but now common in other applications as well. The earliest video cameras were those of John Logie Baird, based on the electromechanical Nipkow disk and used by the BBC in...
s and 42 "timing eyes" located at the Sliding Centre. The track also includes a control tower and administration buildings. There are two spectator overpasses (between turns 1 and 2, and turns 6 and 7) and three spectator underpasses (between turns 8 and 9, turns 11 and 12, and turns 15 and 16). It seated 11,650 spectators during the 2010 Games.
Sustainability
To promote sustainability, the site was selected directly adjacent to an already used part of a major ski area. It was also designed to minimize vegetation and the ecological footprintEcological footprint
The ecological footprint is a measure of human demand on the Earth's ecosystems. It is a standardized measure of demand for natural capital that may be contrasted with the planet's ecological capacity to regenerate. It represents the amount of biologically productive land and sea area necessary to...
in the area. For energy efficiency, trees were retained to cast shade with weather protection and a shading system used to cover parts of the track. The track itself is painted white to maintain low temperatures while minimizing energy demand on the refrigeration system. Waste heat from the refrigeration plant is captured and reused to heat buildings on-site, and could provide other heat uses in the future. Any wood waste created from site clearing activities during venue construction was compost
Compost
Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment. Compost is a key ingredient in organic farming. At its most essential, the process of composting requires simply piling up waste outdoors and waiting for the materials to break down from anywhere...
ed for reuse. Other on-site buildings also followed similar green building design principles.
Awards
In 2008, the Sliding Centre received two British Columbia Ready-Mixed Concrete Association Awards for Excellence in Concrete Construction. The first award was for Public Works while the second one was for the Century Award.On 22 August 2006, VANOC targeted Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Canada by applying for "silver" green building certification for the 708 m² (7,620.8 sq ft) refrigeration plant building. The refrigeration plant received "gold" certification level on 2 February 2010.
Characteristics
| Sport | Length | Turns | Vertical drop (start to finish) | Average grade (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bobsleigh and skeleton | 1450 m (4,757.2 ft) | 16 | 152 m (498.7 ft) | 10.5 |
| Luge – men's singles | 1374 m (4,507.9 ft) | 16 | Not listed | Not listed |
| Luge – women's singles and doubles | 1193 m (3,914 ft) | 14 | Not listed | Not listed |
| Junior (bobsleigh, skeleton, luge) | 953 m (3,126.6 ft) | 11 | Not listed | Not listed |
| Turn | Name | Origin of the name | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Slingshot | For the slingshot Slingshot A slingshot, shanghai, flip, bean shooter or catapult is a small hand-powered projectile weapon. The classic form consists of a Y-shaped frame held in the off hand, with two rubber strips attached to the uprights. The other ends of the strips lead back to a pocket which holds the projectile... effect of the turn after the start of the bobsleigh, skeleton, or men's single's luge run. |
|
| 2 | Fallaway | For the steep drop of the track after this curve. It has a 20% grade, the steepest part of the track. | |
| 3 | Wedge | Where the doubles and women's single luge sleds coming from the start house "wedge" themselves onto the track. | |
| 7 | Lueders Loop | After Canadian bobsledder Lueders, who crashed out at the curve during track certification in March 2008. | |
| 9, 10 | Lynx | After the large population of lynx Lynx A lynx is any of the four Lynx genus species of medium-sized wildcats. The name "lynx" originated in Middle English via Latin from Greek word "λύγξ", derived from the Indo-European root "*leuk-", meaning "light, brightness", in reference to the luminescence of its reflective eyes... located in the British Columbia province. Also to the turns being shaped like the top head of the lynx if the track map is viewed from the air. |
|
| 11 | Shiver | After the turn sending shivers down an athlete's spine prior to entry into the next four corners of the track. | |
| 12, 13, 14, 15 | Labyrinth of four curves without a straightaway. Named because a mistake on this part of the track could cost competitors a chance at a gold medal. It is also in reference to the British Columbia gold rushes British Columbia Gold Rushes The presence of gold in the region that is now British Columbia is mentioned in old legends that, in part, led to its discovery. The Strait of Anian, claimed to have been sailed by Juan de Fuca for whom today's Strait of Juan de Fuca is named, was described as passing through a land "rich in gold,... that happened between 1850 and 1899. Turn 13 of the Gold Rush Trail was christened "50/50" by American bobsledder Holcomb during the first day of four-man training in February 2009. 50% of the sleds crashed on Turn 13 on their runs that day. The next day, Holcomb posted the name on the wall of that turn, which the track manager approved. Holcomb's crew was also the first to go down the track that next day, successfully completing the run. The name has stuck, being used in broadcast coverage of the Vancouver Olympics. |
||
| 16. | Thunderbird | After the Thunderbird who is prevalent in much of Native culture Indigenous peoples of the Americas The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans... in British Columbia Aboriginal peoples in Canada Aboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative.... . It represents the thunder in the air after a competitor finishes the track and is also its final curve. |
Turn names for 4–6 and 8 were not given.
Track g-forces were expected to reach up to 5.02 for men's singles luge. Maximum speed was reached at 147.9 km/h (91.9 mph) in four-man bobsleigh during the certification process.
Track records
The luge track records shown were set at the men's singles start house and women's singles/men's doubles start houses during the World Cup competition in February 2009. After Kumaritashvili's death on 12 February 2010, the competition for men's singles was moved to the women's singles/men's doubles start house while the competition for women's singles/ men's doubles was moved to the junior start house. The fastest runs set during the 2010 Winter Olympics are not on this list until an issue between the Whistler 2010 Sports Legacies and the FIL is resolved.| Event | Record | Athlete(s) | Date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bobsleigh – two-man | Start | 6 February 2009 | 4.70 | ||
| Bobsleigh – two-man | Track | |
20 February 2010 21 February 2010 |
51.57 | |
| Bobsleigh – four-man | Start | 26 February 2010 | 4.70 | ||
| Bobsleigh – four-man | Track | 26 February 2010 | 50.86 | ||
| Bobsleigh – two-woman | Start | 23 February 2010 24 February 2010 |
5.11 | ||
| Bobsleigh – two-woman | Track | 24 February 2010 | 52.85 | ||
| Men's skeleton | Start | 18 February 2010 | 4.48 | ||
| Men's skeleton | Track | 19 February 2010 | 52.20 | ||
| Women's skeleton | Start | 18 February 2010 | 4.90 | ||
| Women's skeleton | Track | 19 February 2010 | 53.68 | ||
| Luge – men's singles | Start | 21 February 2009 | 3.541 | ||
| Luge – men's singles | Track | 21 February 2009 | 46.808 | ||
| Luge – women's singles | Start | 20 February 2009 | 7.183 | ||
| Luge – women's singles | Track | 20 February 2009 | 48.992 | ||
| Luge – men's doubles | Start | 20 February 2009 | 7.054 | ||
| Luge – men's doubles | Track | 20 February 2009 | 48.608 |
External links
- FIBT track profile – Men's singles luge join the track prior to turn one while women's singles/ men's doubles luge join prior to turn three.
- Official website
- Official Report to the International Olympic Committee on the accident of Georgian athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili
- Vancouver2010.com profile