Calgary (pps) The upcoming luge season will kick-off in Canada – and it will conclude in Canada, too. Even though the curtains will be raised for the 33rd season in the Viessmann Luge World Cup on November 20, 2009, there is no doubt about it that all athletes will be thinking about the upcoming season’s highlight: the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, to take place on February 12-28, 2010.
But for all that, the eight events of the Viessmann Luge World Cup will be decisive because in the first half of the season the stops in Calgary, Igls (Austria), Altenberg (Germany), Lillehammer (Norway), Koenigssee, Winterberg, Oberhof (all Germany) and Cesana (Italy) will be counting as qualifying events and then later – at the last three World Cup events – will be decisive for the respective starting order at the Olympic Games. A maximum of 110 lugers are eligible to start in Vancouver (40 men’s singles, 30 women’s singles and 20 double-seater) and the starting places in the seeded group are much sought-after by the medal favourites. This is the reason why no luger will underestimate the Viessmann Luge World Cup. The Viessmann Luge World Cup is the final stage on the road to Vancouver.
The more so, since the World Cup series boasts a total prize money of 127,000 Euro in the women’s and men’s singles as well as the double-seater. Including the prize money for the Team Relay, Challenge Cup and the FIL European Luge Championships in Sigulda, Latvia (January 22-24, 2010) in the Olympic season, the International Luge Federation offers a total prize money of more than 260,000 Euro. Top favourites to win the overall World Cup are, of course, the defending champions. Additionally, Germany’s Tatjana Huefner and Italy’s Armin Zoeggeler as well as compatriots Christian Oberstolz-Patrick Gruber could well start a hunt for two records from way back when…
In the women’s event only Austria’s Angelika Schafferer managed to win the overall rankings three times running. In the early days of the World Cup series - in 1978-79, 1979-80 and 1980-81 - she took the overall World Cup crown. Tatjana Huefner earned the overall victory in the past two seasons and with another win she could well draw level with Schafferer. With his so far eight overall victories Armin Zoeggeler, who intends to continue his career until the 42nd FIL Luge World Championships in Cesana in 2011, only needs another two in order to close the gap to record winner Markus Prock of Austria (ten overall victories).
However, Tatjana Huefner’s strongest contender is compatriot and two-time World runner-up Natalie Geisenberger. Further favourites are World Champion Erin Hamlin (USA), World bronze medallist Natalia Yakushenko (Ukraine), the 2009 World fourth-placed Alex Gough (Canada) as well as the two Austrian lugers Nina Reithmayer and Veronika Halder. Armin Zoeggeler, with his 45 individual victories the most outstanding luger of the past years, will have to deal with two-time World champion Felix Loch and David Moeller (both of Germany) as well as Russia’s Albert Demchenko.
Thanks to the doubles’ teams with Oberstolz-Gruber and World champions Gerhard Plankensteiner-Oswald Haselrieder Italy clearly won the nations ranking in the pre-Olympic season. However, the German teams with veterans Patric Leitner-Alexander Resch as well as André Florschuetz-Torsten Wustlich or World bronze medallists Mark Grimmette-Brian Martin (USA) should not be underestimated either.
