Whistler/Vancouver:
Tragedy struck the Winter Olympics on what was supposed to be a day of celebration, as a Georgian male athlete lost his life in a training accident.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge said that Olympics officials were in "deep mourning" on Friday following the death of a Georgian luger in a training crash just a few hours before the opening ceremony of the Vancouver Winter Games.
Nodar Kumaritashvili was killed after flying off the track wall, hitting a steel pylon on the final turn of his run at the treacherous Whistler Sliding Centre.
"I have no words to say what we feel," Rogge said at an IOC news conference.
Rogge also said he was in contact with the 21-year-old athlete's family, the Georgian national Olympic committee and Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, who was in Vancouver for the Games. He said it wasn't clear whether the Georgians would withdraw from the Olympics.
Georgia has seven other athletes entered in the Games, four men and three women. The team has three Alpine skiers, three freestyle skiers and another men's luger, Levran Guereshidze.
Rogge said the crash was being investigated by the international luge federation but he declined to speculate on possible changes in the competition.
The men's luge is scheduled to being on Saturday.
The Whistler track is considered the world's fastest and several Olympians recently questioned its safety. On Thursday, five-time Olympian Mark Grimmette, chosen as the US team's flag bearer, said the speeds on the track were pushing the boundaries of safety.
"This track is fast and you definitely have to be on your game," he said.
American luger Christian Niccum had also crashed during a World Cup event in Whistler last year. "When I hit that ice going 90 mph it turns into fire," Niccum said at a news conference on Thursday. More than a dozen competitors have crashed during Olympic luge training.
Rogge, however, declined to comment at Friday's news conference on whether the course was too dangerous. "I'm sorry, this is a time for sorrow," he told one reporter. "It's not a time to look for reasons. That will come in due time."
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge said that Olympics officials were in "deep mourning" on Friday following the death of a Georgian luger in a training crash just a few hours before the opening ceremony of the Vancouver Winter Games.
Nodar Kumaritashvili was killed after flying off the track wall, hitting a steel pylon on the final turn of his run at the treacherous Whistler Sliding Centre.
"I have no words to say what we feel," Rogge said at an IOC news conference.
Rogge also said he was in contact with the 21-year-old athlete's family, the Georgian national Olympic committee and Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, who was in Vancouver for the Games. He said it wasn't clear whether the Georgians would withdraw from the Olympics.
Georgia has seven other athletes entered in the Games, four men and three women. The team has three Alpine skiers, three freestyle skiers and another men's luger, Levran Guereshidze.
Rogge said the crash was being investigated by the international luge federation but he declined to speculate on possible changes in the competition.
The men's luge is scheduled to being on Saturday.
The Whistler track is considered the world's fastest and several Olympians recently questioned its safety. On Thursday, five-time Olympian Mark Grimmette, chosen as the US team's flag bearer, said the speeds on the track were pushing the boundaries of safety.
"This track is fast and you definitely have to be on your game," he said.
American luger Christian Niccum had also crashed during a World Cup event in Whistler last year. "When I hit that ice going 90 mph it turns into fire," Niccum said at a news conference on Thursday. More than a dozen competitors have crashed during Olympic luge training.
Rogge, however, declined to comment at Friday's news conference on whether the course was too dangerous. "I'm sorry, this is a time for sorrow," he told one reporter. "It's not a time to look for reasons. That will come in due time."
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