JEFF CHRISTIE LEADS CANADIAN LUGE ATHLETES INTO THIRTEENTH SPOT AT WORLD CUP
ALTENBERG, Ger.—Jeff Christie finished as the top Canadian in 13th spot at the Luge World Cup in Altenberg, Germany on Sunday.The 24-year-old Christie, who has advanced this season into the top-15 on a regular basis, clocked a two-run time of one minute 50.770 seconds.
I was fairly happy with my sliding today. I had a strong first run, but had some troubles on my second run which cost me some time, said Christie, who posted five top-15 finishes this season and two of those in the top-10. I cant be disappointed. We have been travelling a long time and have been pushed harder as a team than ever before so were pretty tired and I think this is a decent end to a decent season.
Altenberg will be the final race of the 2007-08 season as the Canadian team will head home for a two week break before a three-week training camp on the new Olympic Track in Whistler, B.C., site of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.
Our training this season started earlier than ever before and is going later than usual. We are already training for next year because we are a little behind the rest of the competition, said Calgarys Christie. We have two weeks off before heading to Whistler which is going to be such a neat experience. It will be fun sliding on our own, figuring out a new track and a great experience. We are looking forward to it.
Two other Canucks also suited up on Sunday. Sam Edney, of Calgary, finished 28th with a time of 2:06.538, while Ian Cockerline, also of Calgary, was 29th at 2:09.110.
Armin Zöggeler, of Italy, claimed his 39th World Cup victory of his career. The two-time Olympic champion posted a golden time of 1:49.320. Germanys David Möller was second at 1:49.609, while Russias Albert Demtschenko was third 1:49.769.
The Canadian Luge Association is the governing body for luge racing in Canada. The Canadian Luge Association operates the Olympic Luge Training Centre at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, which develops our nations high-performance luge athletes and promotes the sport across the country. For more information on the Canadian Luge Association, please visit us at www.luge.ca on the Internet.
COMPLETE RESULTS: www.fil-luge.org
Mens Top-Five Results:
1. Armin Zöggeler, ITA, 1:49.320; 2. David Möller, GER, 1:49.609; 3. Albert Demtschenko, RUS, 1:49.769; 4. Johannes Ludwig, GER, 1:49.987; 5. Jan Eichhorn, GER, 1:50.170.
Canadian Results:
13. Jeff Christie, Calgary, 1:50.770; 28. Sam Edney, Calgary, 2:06.538; 29. Ian Cockerline, Calgary, 2:09.110.
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