Norton USA Luge Start Competition on September 19 in Lake Placid

Lake Placid (FIL-USA Luge/ 25 Aug 2025) The best luge athletes from the USA will meet on Friday, September 19, at the cooled indoor ice start facility of USA Luge in Lake Placid.

At stake is the title of Norton USA Luge Start Champion. The competitions will take place at 4 p.m. at USA Luge headquarters at 57 Church Street in Lake Placid.

Three-time Olympian Tucker West (Lake Placid, New York) hopes to add a 13th start title in the men's singles to his resume. West, who is consistently among the world's best athletes in the start rankings, will face 2022 Olympian Jonny Gustafson (Massena, New York), Hunter Harris (East Fairfield, Vermont) and Matt Greiner (Park City, Utah). Logan Barnes (Clarkesville, Tennessee), a member of the junior national team, will also compete for the title of “Norton USA Start Champion.”

Three-time Olympian Summer Britcher (Glen Rock, Pennsylvania) is hoping for her eighth title since 2015 in the women's singles. Her challengers are two-time Olympian Emily Fischnaller (Lake Placid, New York), who last won the title in 2021, as well as Ashley Farquharson (Park City, Utah) and Emma Erickson (Park City, Utah), who are both hoping for their first victory.

In the women's doubles, the reigning 2024 vice world champions Chevonne Forgan (Chelmsford, Massachusetts) and Sophia Kirkby (Ray Brook, New York) are expected to battle Maya Chan (Chicago, Illinois) and Sophia Gordon (Sussex, Wisconsin) for the starting title.

The reigning men's doubles champions, Marcus Mueller (Brookfield, Wisconsin) and Ansel Haugsjaa (Acton, Massachusetts), will try to defend their title against Zack DiGregorio (Medway, Massachusetts) and Sean Hollander (Lake Placid, New York) as well as the duo Dana Kellogg (Chesterfield, Massachusetts) and Frank Ike (Lititz, Pennsylvania).

The start championship format consists of three heats, with the sleds with the lowest total times winning. The first two heats are traditional starts, while the third is a reaction start, as used in the team relay.

The competition takes place annually in late summer and early fall and marks the countdown to the teams' return to the ice in preparation for the EBERSPÄCHER World Cup series and, this year, the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, which will officially open in Italy on February 6, 2026.

The first EBERSPÄCHER World Cup of the 2025-26 season will take place from December 5 to 7, 2025, in Innsbruck, Austria. The tour will then move to the USA, where World Cup races will be held in Park City, Utah (December 11 to 13, 2025) and Lake Placid, New York (December 18-20, 2025). The luge competitions for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina will take place from February 7 to 12.

The public is welcome to attend the Norten USA Start Championships free of charge. On September 19, 2025, USA Luge will also offer its weekly “Tours and Rides” program, which begins at 2 p.m. For a donation of $20, participants will receive a guided tour of the ice start facility and workshops, as well as the opportunity to ride down the start ramp themselves. All proceeds will benefit USA Luge athletes and programs.