Sigulda bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track

Sigulda bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track's lower start

The Sigulda Bobsleigh and Luge Track (Latvian: Siguldas bobsleja un kamaniņu trase) is located in Sigulda, Latvia, built in 1986. Currently, the track manager is Dainis Dukurs, former bobsleigh brakeman and the father of skeleton racers Martins and Tomass Dukurs.

History

Sledding took place in Sigulda as early as 1887.[1] Several alpine skiing venues were held near the track following World War II.[2] By the late 1960s, the city government of Sigulda approved the construction of a new track, designed by the Leipzig Sports Facilities Scientific and Technical Centre in East Germany. Construction began in 1984 with the participation of the Yugoslav company Graming d.o.o. and local builders, and the track was finally completed in 1986.[3][4] It was built primarily for the needs of Soviet bobsledders and lugers, but after the restoration of the independence of Latvia in 1990, the track became the training center for Latvian wintersport athletes.

Although skeleton wasn't initially in the building plan, Sigulda has hosted World Cup races in skeleton since the 2000s. Also, luge competitions are hosted in Sigulda each year, however, the track can't host four-man bobsleigh races, therefore there haven't been any World Championship races hosted in Sigulda, although in the 2018/2019 season a Bobsleigh World Cup stage will take place in Sigulda.[5][6] Zintis Ekmanis and the original track designers has designed a new layout which would change two curves and make four-man bobsleigh races possible, though some lugers are not happy with this idea,[7] because this may render the track unusable for women's singles and men's doubles lugers. Also, Dainis Dukurs has said in an interview for Sporta Avīze that there was an experiment involving Juris Šics, Andris Šics, Tomass Dukurs and Martins Dukurs, in which the quartet drove with a four-man bobsleigh without crashing. Dukurs stated that this proves that the track is, in fact, suitable for four-man teams, but to make it perfect for bobsleigh, most of the track should be rebuilt. The track will undergo major renovation after 2014 season.[8] Also, an artificial ice start estacade was built in summer of 2008. It would have been used for bobsled, skeleton, and luge events for the 2026 Winter Olympics had the bid of Stockholm–Åre won.[9][10]

Statistics

Physical statistics
Sport[11] Length (meters) Turns
Two-man bobsleigh and skeleton[11] 1200 16
Luge – men's singles[11] 1200 16
Luge – women's singles and men's doubles[12] 988 13

No vertical drop, percent grading, or turn names were mentioned.[11][12]

Track records
Sport Record Nation – athlete(s) Date Time (seconds)
Luge – men's singles[13] Start  Johannes Ludwig (GER) 24 January 2010 4.285
Luge – men's singles[13] Track  Albert Demchenko (RUS) 24 January 2010 48.282
Luge – women's singles[14] Start  Tatjana Hüfner (GER) 15 February 2008 1.799
Luge – women's singles[14] Track  Tatiana Ivanova (RUS) 23 January 2010 42.679
Luge – men's doubles[15] Start  Patric Leitner (GER) &  Alexander Resch (GER) 6 December 2008 1.698
Luge – men's doubles[15] Track  Andreas Linger (AUT) &  Wolfgang Linger (AUT) 23 January 2010 42.172

Championships hosted

References

  1. ^ "Bobsleigh and Luge track Sigulda". tourism.sigulda.lv. Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  2. ^ History of sport in Sigulda in English. – accessed February 21, 2008.
  3. ^ "Bobtrase | History". bobtrase.lv. Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  4. ^ "Санно-бобслейная трасса в Сигулде, Латвия - история проектирования". renatar.livejournal.com. Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  5. ^ "Siguldā notiks nākamās sezonas Pasaules kausa pirmais posms! | Bobslejs.lv". Latvian Bobsled and Skeleton Federation (in Latvian). 2018-03-13. Archived from the original on 2018-05-19. Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  6. ^ "Siguldā pirmoreiz notiks Pasaules kausa posms bobslejā". Sportacentrs.com (in Latvian). 2018-03-13. Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  7. ^ "Latvijas kamaniņbraucēji kritiski vērtē ieceri pārbūvēt Siguldas trasi". TvNET. 3 December 2006. (in Latvian)
  8. ^ "Siguldas trasei līdz nākamās sezonas startam paredzēta rekonstrukcija". 26 February 2014.
  9. ^ "Stockholm 2026 reveal plan to use sliding track in Latvia as part of Winter Olympic bid". 21 February 2018. Retrieved 24 March 2018.
  10. ^ "Latvia to help Sweden with 2026 Winter Olympic bid". The Local. 2018-06-13. Retrieved 2018-11-28.
  11. ^ a b c d Vietas.lv – Siguldas bobsleja un kamaniņu trase (in Latvian)
  12. ^ a b FIL-Luge track profile
  13. ^ a b FIL European Luge Championships 2010 men's singles 24 January 2010 results. – accessed 24 January 2010.
  14. ^ a b FIL European Luge Championships 2010 women's singles 23 January 2010 results. – accessed 23 January 2010.
  15. ^ a b FIL European Luge Championships 2010 men's doubles 23 January 2010 results. – accessed 23 January 2010.
  16. ^ Men's singles luge European championships since 1914. Archived 2006-11-15 at the Wayback Machine – accessed 7 December 2009.
  17. ^ 54th FIL Congress in Berchtesgaden. at the Fédération Internationale de Luge de Course (30 June 2006 article accessed 13 February 2008.)
  18. ^ Men's singles luge World championships since 1955. Archived 2007-12-18 at the Wayback Machine – accessed 7 December 2009.
  • Official website
  • FIBT track profile – Click on video to show run down the track from a skeleton racer's perspective. Men's singles luge intersects with two-man bobsleigh/ skeleton part of the track prior to turn one while women's singles/ men's doubles luge intersect prior to turn four.
  • FIL-Luge track profile

57°09′08″N 24°50′19″E / 57.152211°N 24.838586°E / 57.152211; 24.838586