Pierre Lueders facts for kids
Lueders at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin
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| Full name | Pierre Lueders | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality |  Canadian |
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| Born | 26 September 1970 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada |
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| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 101 kg (223 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country |  Canada |
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| Sport |  Bobsleigh |
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| Retired | 2010 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Olympic finals |    |
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Medal record
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Pierre Lueders is a famous Canadian bobsleigh athlete. He was born on September 26, 1970. He is an Olympic, world, and World Cup champion. Pierre competed in bobsleigh from 1990 until 2010. He was the driver, also called the pilot, for both two-man and four-man bobsleigh teams. After he retired in 2010, he was added to Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.
Contents
Pierre's Early Life
Pierre Lueders grew up in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He went to Winterburn School for his elementary and junior high years. Later, he attended Jasper Place High School for grades 10 through 12.
Pierre's Bobsleigh Career
Starting in Bobsleigh
Pierre first started as a decathlon athlete. A decathlon is a sports event with ten different track and field challenges. In 1989, his cousin, who was a sportswriter, suggested he try bobsleigh. His cousin thought Pierre's body type was better for bobsleigh.
Pierre began as a brakeman, who helps push the sled and pulls the brake at the end. He quickly learned and became a pilot (driver) by 1991. In 1992, he won his very first World Cup race.
Olympic Achievements
Pierre Lueders competed in five Winter Olympics. He is known as the most successful bobsleigh athlete in Canadian history.
At the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, Pierre and his brakeman, Dave MacEachern, won a gold medal in the two-man bobsleigh event. They shared this gold medal with a team from Italy. This was only Canada's second bobsleigh medal ever. It was also the first gold medal since 1964.
After the 1998 Games, Pierre and Dave stopped being partners. Dave wanted to try being a pilot himself. Pierre then teamed up with other brakemen like Ken Leblanc and Giulio Zardo.
At the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, USA, Pierre finished fifth in the two-man race. He was ninth in the four-man race. After this, he took a break from four-man bobsleigh for the 2002-2003 season.
In the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, Pierre and his brakeman, Lascelles Brown, won a silver medal in the two-man event. They won this medal even though there was heavy snowfall during their race.
In 2010, Pierre finished fifth in both the two-man and four-man bobsleigh races. He retired after these Games.
World Championship Medals
Pierre Lueders also won many medals at the FIBT World Championships. These championships are major international bobsleigh competitions. He won eight medals in total:
- Two gold medals in the two-man event (in 2004 and 2005).
- Four silver medals (three in two-man and one in four-man).
- Two bronze medals in the four-man event.
World Cup Success
Pierre Lueders had great success in the Bobsleigh World Cup. This is a series of races held throughout the season. He won the overall men's title four times. He also won the two-man event a record six times. He won the four-man event once. Pierre won an amazing 88 career medals in the Bobsleigh World Cup.
Whistler Sliding Centre
On December 19, 2007, Pierre Lueders and his brakeman, Justin Kripps, were the first to race down the Whistler Sliding Centre. This track was built for the 2010 Winter Olympics. There is a turn on the track called "Lueders Loop." It was named after him because he crashed his sled there in March 2008. This was his first crash since 2001.
Coaching Career
After retiring as an athlete in 2010, Pierre Lueders became a development coach for the Canadian national bobsleigh team. He left this job in May 2012. He said he wanted a break from the sport after 22 years as an athlete and coach.
Just over a week later, Pierre was chosen to be the head coach for the Russian national bobsleigh team. This team went on to win two gold medals at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. He stopped coaching Russia in June 2016.
In October 2017, he became the head coach for the Republic of Korea's bobsleigh team. This was before the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. At those Games, the Korean four-man team won a silver medal. This was the first Olympic bobsleigh medal ever won by an Asian team.
Personal Life
Since 1997, Pierre Lueders has lived in Calgary, Alberta. Outside of bobsleigh, he started working in real estate in Calgary in January 2017.
World Cup Results
| Rank | Season | Event |
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1993–94 | Two-man |
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1993–94 | Combined |
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1994–95 | Two-man |
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1994–95 | Four-man |
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1994–95 | Combined |
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1996–97 | Two-man |
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1997–98 | Combined |
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1997–98 | Two-man |
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2002–03 | Two-man |
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2005–06 | Combined |
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2005–06 | Two-man |
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1995–96 | Combined |
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1995–96 | Two-man |
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2001–02 | Two-man |
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2003–04 | Combined |
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2003–04 | Two-man |
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2004–05 | Two-man |
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2006–07 | Two-man |
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2005-06 | Four-man |
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2006–07 | Combined |
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1996–97 | Combined |
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1998–99 | Combined |
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1998–99 | Two-man |
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1999–00 | Combined |
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1999–00 | Four-man |
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2004–05 | Combined |
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2004–05 | Four-man |
See also
In Spanish: Pierre Lueders para niños
