Canadian Luge Squad Bumped off Podium in Fourth at World Cup in Lake Placid
LAKE PLACID, N.Y.—Canada’s luge athletes came up short in their charge for the podium, finishing fourth in a World Cup team relay event at Lake Placid, N.Y. on Saturday.
Led by Calgary’s Alex Gough, who clocked the third-fastest time of the women’s sleds, the team of Calgary’s Sam Edney along with doubles sled Tristan Walker, of Cochrane, Alta., and Calgary’s Justin Snith, the Canadians posted a combined time of 2:36.004.
“I think this shows us a podium isn’t a sure thing in the relay,” said Edney, who was part of the silver-medal winning team last weekend at the World Championships. “We know we need three clean runs to have a shot at the medals. We realized this right away and we are going regroup and get at it in a couple of weeks in Sochi which is the big test.”
The Germans finished on top with a time of 2:34.894. The Americans grabbed second spot at 2:35.001, while Italy slid to the bronze medal at 2:35.474.
Included in the 2014 Olympic line-up, the team competition consists of one female sled, one male sled and one doubles team sled. Each athlete completes one run for a combined final time. Consistency amongst all three sliders is the key to success in the team event. Athletes hit a pad that hangs over the track at the finish, which in turn opens the gate at the start for the next team member.
Earlier in the day, Canada’s two-time Olympian, Sam Edney, had another solid World Cup result, finishing sixth in the men’s singles race.
The 28-year-old was sitting in fifth spot after the first run, but made a small error heading into the final corner of his second trip down the Olympic track on Mount Van Hoevenberg, which killed his speed and dropped him one spot with a two-run time of 1:45.217.
“I was really pushing myself on that second run and just made a small mistake on a big uphill section towards the final curve,” said Edney, who finished a career-best fifth last weekend. “I am super pleased with this result. It proves to me that I am moving to where I need to be and can be in the mix with the best in the world.”
The Italian sliders swept the podium in Lake Placid. The legendary Armin Zoggeler clocked a golden time of 1:44.655. Dominik Fischnaller slid to the silver at 1:44.867, while David Mair rounded out the men’s podium in third place at 1:45.005.
The top luge athletes on the planet now take one week off before traveling to Sochi, Russia for the final World Cup race of the season.
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 its title sponsor, Fast Track Capital, along with the support 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.
COMPLETE RESULTS: www.fil-luge.org
Top-Five Team Relay Results:
1. Germany, 2:34.894; 2. United States, 2:35.001; 3. Italy, 2:35.474; 4. Canada, 2:36.004; 5. Romania, 2:37.725
Men’s Top-Five and Canadian Results:
1. Armin Zoggeler, ITA, 1:44.655; 2. Dominik Fischnaller, ITA, 1:44.867; 3. David Mair, ITA, 1:45.005; 4. Thor Haug Norbech, NOR, 1:45.088; 5. Chris Mazdzer, USA, 1:45.197
Canadian Results:
6. Sam Edney, Calgary, 1:45.217