At least 25 nations to participate in International Training Week in Sochi
Sochi (pps) Three weeks before the official start signal is given for the Viessmann Luge World Cup series on November 24-25, 2012 in Innsbruck-Igls (Austria), the new luge season will be kicked off on the future track for the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi. At least 25 nations have already announced their participation in the International Training Week, which will take place at the “Sliding Center Sanki” from November 5 to 14, 2012.
About 18 months ahead of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, the International Training Week and the corresponding test runs are part of the homologation process by the two international federations FIL and FIBT (Fédération Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Toboganning). The “Sliding Center Sanki” is situated at an altitude of 1.250 meters in Rzhanaya Polyana in the Western Caucasus, about 60 kilometers northeast of Sochi where the 2014 Olympic bobsleigh, skeleton and luge events will be carried out.
According to the rules of the International Luge Federation (FIL), more than 150 luge athletes will be getting to know the new artificially refrigerated track. “The athletes will be slowly introduced, step by step, to the new track,” explained FIL Sport Coordinator Marie-Luise Rainer of Italy. FIL regulations specify a systematic training with different start heights whereby the lugers will be getting to know the track from the bottom up.
