Trinity Ellis Leads Young Canadian Speed Queens into New Olympic Quadrennial at Eberspächer Luge World Cup in Whistler

WHISTLER, B.C.—Trinity Ellis led four Canadian women into a new race season with a 13th-place finish at the Eberspächer Luge World Cup in Whistler, B.C. on Friday evening.

Ellis, of Pemberton, B.C., bettered her lone Olympic finish at the Beijing Games by one spot, clocking a combined two-run time of 1:17:656.

“Both runs were pretty good. I’m happy with them and that is what my goal was today,” said the 20-year-old. “It feels so great to be back racing at home. It has been so long since we were last here. It is very special to have family and friends here cheering us on.”

Competing in just her second Eberspächer World Cup race at the Whistler Sliding Centre, Ellis put together her fastest start of the week with steady driving down the slick 16-corner chute for a solid start to the new season.

“I am happy with both of my runs,” said Ellis, who burst onto the World Cup scene four years ago with an eighth-place finish in Austria.

“A home race has some added pressure, so it feels nice to put down some runs that I’m proud of.  There are lots of areas to improve, but we have a good plan and I’m excited for the rest of the season.”

Austria’ Madeleine Egle upset the dominant German nation, winning the women’s singles event with a time of 1:17:137. Julia Taubitz (Germany) was second at 1:17:161, while Germany’s Merle Frabel slid to third at 1:17.182.

Ellis was joined in the top-20 with three of her young teammates developing together while representing a new generation of Canadian athletes on the elite luge circuit.

Calgary’s Carolyn Maxwell was the next best Canuck in 15th spot. The oldest member of the Canadian women’s squad at just 22 climbed one place up the leaderboard in her final run down Blackcomb Mountain, stopping the clock at 1:17.682.

Two Whistler-based 19-year-olds also enjoyed solid outings in their first World Cup singles race on the track they learned to slide on.

Caitlin Nash, who was introduced to the sport through a Grade 6 field trip to the Whistler Sliding Centre, placed 16th at 1:17:728.

“I’m really happy. I was very nervous coming into this race, but I laid down the best two runs that were possible for me today,” said Nash, who started the week by returning to Spring Creek Elementary School with her teammates to inspire the students.

The two Whistler teens will be back in the start handles on Saturday, representing Canada in the debut of women’s doubles racing on the Eberspächer World Cup in Canada.

“We both had solid runs today so that will help us build some more confidence heading into the race tomorrow. We are excited for it,” added Nash.

Nash and Corless are no strangers to racing doubles. They were 16 years old when they made history competing in a Eberspächer World Cup doubles race against the men. Later that year, they won the silver when women’s doubles discipline debuted at the 2020 Youth Olympic Games.

The event will make its Olympic debut at the 2026 Milano Cortina Games.

Canada’s Devin Wardrope and Cole Zajanski will kick things off on Saturday in the men’s doubles race at 11 a.m. PST.

Canada’s most successful doubles luge athletes – Tristan Walker and Justin Snith – will say goodbye to the sport by taking one final run on Saturday when they forerun the doubles race.

Tickets to the Eberspächer Luge World Cup are available for $10 at the gate. All of the action is streamed live on CBC.ca. The final run of the women’s doubles race will be televised on CBC Sports from 1-2 p..m. PST.

Complete Results from the Eberspächer Luge World Cup

The Canadian Luge Association is a not-for-profit organization responsible for governing the sport of luge across the country. With the financial backing of from the Government of Canada, Canadian Olympic Committee and Own the Podium, the Canadian Luge Association safely recruits and develops the nation’s current and future high-performance luge athletes with the goal of regularly climbing onto the international podium. For more information on the Canadian Luge Association, please visit us at www.luge.ca on the Internet.