Luge at the Winter Olympics facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Luge at the Winter Olympics |
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| Governing body | FIL |
| Events | 4 (men: 1; women: 1; mixed: 2) |
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Luge is an exciting winter sport you can see at the Winter Olympic Games. In luge, athletes slide down an icy track on a special sled. They lie on their backs, feet first, and use gravity to go super fast! The goal is to finish the track in the shortest time possible.
Luge first became an Olympic sport at the 1964 Winter Olympics. Back then, there were events for men, women, and a two-person team event. The two-person event is open to anyone, but so far, only men have competed in it. Athletes from Germany have been very successful in luge. They have won a huge number of medals over the years!
Contents
What are the Luge Events at the Olympics?
At the Winter Olympics, lugers compete in different events. Here's a quick look at the main ones:
- Men's Singles: One male athlete races down the track alone.
- Women's Singles: One female athlete races down the track alone.
- Doubles: Two athletes ride on one sled together. They work as a team to steer and go fast.
- Team Relay: This is a newer and very exciting event! Teams are made up of a women's singles luger, a men's singles luger, and a doubles team. They all slide one after another, hitting a target at the bottom to "tag" the next teammate. The fastest combined time wins!
Luge has been a part of every Winter Olympics since 1964. The number of events has grown over time, with the Team Relay being added more recently.
| Event | 24 | 28 | 32 | 36 | 48 | 52 | 56 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 72 | 76 | 80 | 84 | 88 | 92 | 94 | 98 | 02 | 06 | 10 | 14 | 18 | 22 | 26 | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's singles | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | 17 | ||||||||
| Men’s doubles | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | 17 | ||||||||
| Women's singles | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | 17 | ||||||||
| Women's doubles | • | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team relay | • | • | • | • | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Total events | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
Top Luge Athletes: Medal Leaders
Some athletes have won many medals in luge at the Olympics. This table shows the lugers who have won at least two gold medals or three medals in total. You can see how many gold, silver, and bronze medals they earned!
| Athlete | NOC | Event | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Natalie Geisenberger |  Germany (GER) |
Women's singles Team relay |
2010–2022 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| Tobias Arlt | Germany (GER) |
Doubles Team relay |
2014–2022 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Tobias Wendl | Germany (GER) |
Doubles Team relay |
2014–2022 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Armin Zöggeler |  Italy (ITA) |
Men's singles | 1994–2014 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 |
| Georg Hackl | West Germany (FRG) Germany (GER) |
Men's singles | 1988–2006 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Jan Behrendt |  East Germany (GDR) Germany (GER) |
Doubles | 1988–1998 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Stefan Krauße | East Germany (GDR) Germany (GER) |
Doubles | 1988–1998 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Klaus Bonsack |  United Team of Germany (EUA) East Germany (GDR) |
Men's singles Doubles |
1964–1972 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Felix Loch | Germany (GER) |
Men's singles Team relay |
2010–2014 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Thomas Köhler | United Team of Germany (EUA) East Germany (GDR) |
Men's singles Doubles |
1964–1968 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Paul Hildgartner | Italy (ITA) |
Men's singles Doubles |
1972–1988 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Andreas Linger |  Austria (AUT) |
Doubles | 2006–2014 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Wolfgang Linger | Austria (AUT) |
Doubles | 2006–2014 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Hans Rinn | East Germany (GDR) |
Men's singles Doubles |
1976–1980 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Silke Kraushaar | Germany (GER) |
Women's singles | 1998–2006 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Tatjana Hüfner | Germany (GER) |
Women's singles | 2006–2014 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Albert Demchenko |  Russia (RUS) |
Men's singles Team relay |
1994–2014 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Markus Prock | Austria (AUT) |
Men's singles | 1984–2002 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Andris Šics |  Latvia (LAT) |
Doubles Team relay |
2006–2014 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Juris Šics | Latvia (LAT) |
Doubles Team relay |
2006–2014 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Norbert Hahn | East Germany (GDR) |
Doubles | 1976–1980 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Steffi Martin | East Germany (GDR) |
Women's singles | 1984–1988 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Sylke Otto | Germany (GER) |
Women's singles | 1992 2002–2006 |
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Luge Medal Table by Country
This table shows how many medals each country has won in luge at the Winter Olympics. It includes results up to the 2022 Winter Olympics.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany (GER) |
22 | 12 | 9 | 43 |
| 2 | East Germany (GDR) |
13 | 8 | 8 | 29 |
| 3 | Italy (ITA) |
7 | 4 | 7 | 18 |
| 4 | Austria (AUT) |
6 | 10 | 9 | 25 |
| 5 | United Team of Germany (EUA) |
2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| 6 | West Germany (FRG) |
1 | 4 | 5 | 10 |
| 7 |  Soviet Union (URS) |
1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 8 |  United States (USA) |
0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 9 | Russia (RUS) |
0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 10 | Latvia (LAT) |
0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 11 |  Canada (CAN) |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 12 |  Republic of China (ROC) |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (12 entries) | 52 | 50 | 51 | 153 | |
Note: In the 1972 doubles competition, two gold medals were awarded.
See also
In Spanish: Luge en los Juegos Olímpicos para niños
- List of Olympic venues in luge
- List of multiple Olympic medalists in one event
- Luge at the Youth Olympic Games
