Calgary (pps) Canada’s Alex Gough provided the best publicity prior to the last two events of the Viessmann Luge World Cup series in Calgary and Whistler, Canada. The 21-year old luger earned a fourth place at the 41st FIL Luge World Championships in Lake Placid in the US state of New York. This translates into Canada’s best World Championship result of all times in the women’s singles. “I’m so close to a podium finish. This is why I’m really hungry to make the podium. I’ll give it my best shot to manage that in the next two events back home”, said Gough. In Lake Placid Alex Gough, who achieved a 20th place at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games, missed a bronze medal by a mere 0.281 seconds.
But what is more, Alex Gough demonstrates that the efforts of the German coaches headed by Wolfgang Staudinger, are starting to bear fruits. “To maximize the training and to minimize our mistakes” – that is the motto of Staudinger. The long-time head coach led Germany’s David Moeller to his 2004 World Championship title in Nagano; and during his own active career Staudinger was equally successful - he took the 1988 European Championship title as well as an 1988 Olympic bronze medal in the doubles’ together with Thomas Schwab, now Sports Director of the German Federation. Wolfgang Staudinger’s assistants are Robert Fegg, former World junior champion, and Steffen Skel, two-time World silver medallist in the double-seater (2000 and 2001 together with Steffen Woeller).
Staudinger compares Alex Gough’s constitution with that of Germany’s Sylke Otto. After all, with two Olympic gold medals and four World Championship titles Otto is still the most successful women’s luger of all times. “But sometimes”, Wolfgang Staudinger disclosed, “we have to force Alex a bit”. Well, Calgary-born Alex Gough seems to have learned her lesson: “When we do what ‘Staudi’ tells us to do, we’re really good.”
