Canada's Sam Edney looks to give luge a little extra sizzle
33-year-old from Calgary thinking about repeating his 'Alpensia dismount'
By: Donna Spencer, Canadian Press
If all goes well for Canadian luger Sam Edney at the Winter Olympics, he might again execute a dismount that had Pyeongchang's Alpensia Sliding Centre buzzing last year.
At a World Cup that also served as an Olympic test event for the 2018 Games, Edney executed an acrobatic dismount after crossing the track's finish line.
Instead of waiting for his sled to come to a halt, Edney stood up on the track, tucked his sled under his arm and performed a 180-degree spin while sliding on both feet.
A double fist-pump provided the flourish for what he knew had been a great run en route to a bronze medal. There were more than a few whoops from entertained spectators.
"It kind of spun me perfectly and I had the emotion of 'Yeah, I nailed that one' and the crowd was pumped up," Edney recalled.
Caught up in moment
"It was unplanned, but it turned out awesome. It was pretty neat. Everyone was like 'That's got to be your finishing move. You've got to do that everywhere. You've got to be known for it."'
The 33-year-old from Calgary, who will compete in his fourth Winter Games in South Korea says the track layout there is conducive to a Cirque du Soleil dismount.
"Just the way that the outrun, the finish area, is kind of designed in Pyeongchang they've got this steep section up hill that slows you down quite a bit," Edney explained. "Then there's this little flat pitch.
"During training that week, I was standing up kind of nonchalantly. On race day, I kind of got caught up in the moment and it became kind of part of my routine I guess."
If bobsleds are on the track before luge, he says those heavy sleds carve too many ruts in the ice for him to attempt that dismount.
But that won't be the case in Pyeongchang as men's luge kicks off Olympic sliding sports Saturday with the first and second of four runs.
Edney says luge needs a little more sizzle and he's happy to provide it.
"We need to have that in the sport," he said. "It gives us a good image."
With files from CBC Sports