As tradition, the luge season opens this year on the Tyrolean track of Igls.
It's always nice to meet again, even if this time the ghost of the war in Ukraine hovers and the absence of the Russian team (and sponsors) weighs a ton.
"It's an absurd and very serious situation" considers Armin Zöggeler "Ukrainian athletes are here. Probably they come from areas not directly affected by the conflict. I couldn't even think of competing if I knew that my family was in danger."
Strictly concerning sport, the big news is the debut of women's doubles at senior level.
After the debut at junior level, we attend the premiere in view of Milano Cortina 2026.
In our eyes, the favorites on the eve were the young Germans Degenhardt and Rosenthal, stong of their junior successes. Surprisingly, they only finished third in the Nations Cup, behind the local heroines Selina Egle and Lara Kipp and the "azzurre" Vötter and Oberhofer.
"It's a fun new experience," Marion told us. "Combining single and double is really hard" added TD Zöggeler "Over time and based on the results, women as well as men will have to choose one of the two disciplines."
Complicating the situation this weekend is the fact that the program includes women's doubles and singles in sequence, so the 7 athletes who compeete in both the races will be much more tired than the others during the individual competition.
https://www.oasport.it/2022/12/slittino-attesa-per-il-nuovo-doppio-femminile-armin-zoeggeler-prima-o-poi-servira-fare-una-scelta/
