From Winterberg, GER
Feb. 20, 2020 – Since the beginning of the week, athletes training for the penultimate World Cup race of the 2019/2020 FIL season have complained to the FIL that the track, especially Curve 9, was unsafe for them to compete on. The FIL has told athletes that the track is fine for competition and intends on holding races this weekend despite the objections of some of the top athletes in the sport.
Currently, the entirety of the German doubles program, Chris Mazdzer, Summer Britcher, Roman Repilov, and others have decided to sit out the race this weekend instead of racing on a track that they say is not safe for World Cup competition.
In a statement on his Instagram page, Mazdzer expressed his displeasure of the situation.
“I feel personally that this track is not safe for doubles sleds or for athletes who do not have adequate numbers of runs,” he said. “Everything is not ok, which is why I will not be racing in the men’s competition.”
In a Facebook post, the team of Toni Eggert and Sascha Benecken mirrored Mazdzer’s thoughts.
“In our opinion, the current ice expansion allows a ride in a doubles sled with a risk much higher than normal.”
World Cup point leader Roman Repilov had harsh words for the FIL.
“THIS IS FIASCO” he starts off on a Instagram post. “We flew to the German Winterberg, and what did we see here? We saw a race track that was not ready at all. First I would like to say that every athlete is aware of the risk during the race, the risk is justified only when the track is ready and you can control the sleigh”
Summer Britcher will also sit out this weekend’s race in Winterberg. She had some of the most pointed words about the situation.
“I have the support of my organization when I say that I will NOT race in this farce of a World Cup. But many athletes do not, and the people who are supposed to be looking out for the safety of the athletes, and the integrity of the sport are turning a blind eye. I hope the International Luge Federation will do better in the future, and I hope that the responsible parties will be held accountable.”
As of the time of this post, the FIL still has a weekend of sliding scheduled in Winterberg. Women’s luge is scheduled for 3:55 AM ET and men’s luge at 7:30 AM ET on Saturday, with doubles luge and the team relay both scheduled for Sunday.
UPDATE: Since the original time of this post, both the United States and Austria have pulled out of the race in Winterberg, both citing safety concerns.
