FIL European Luge Championships 2008
Encyclopedia
The FIL European Luge Championships 2008 took place January 7-13, 2008 at the Cesana Pariol
Cesana Pariol
Cesana Pariol was the venue for bobsled, luge and skeleton during the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The track, built for the games, is located in Cesana...

 track in Cesana, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

. The relay competition took the place of the team event that had been held at every European championship since 1988
FIL European Luge Championships 1988
The FIL European Luge Championships 1988 took place in Königssee, West Germany for a record fifth time after hosting the event previously in 1967, 1972, 1973, and 1977...

. This event had all teams start at the same part of the track (located at the women's singles/ men's doubles start house), then run down to the finish and tap on a relay marker to exchange from one slider on a team to the next (men's doubles to women's singles to men's singles) with the fastest time winning.

Time table

  • Practice dates for the events took place January 7-11 with event draws taking place on the 11th.
  • Opening ceremonies took place at 6 PM CET
    Central European Time
    Central European Time , used in most parts of the European Union, is a standard time that is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time . The time offset from UTC can be written as +01:00...

     (5 PM UTC) on January 10.
  • To avoid direct sunlight, the events were conducted in the early morning both days.

Competitors

80 competitors from 15 nations competed at these championships. This included ten relay teams which took place on the 13th.

Men's singles

January 13, 2008 at 8 AM CET (7 AM UTC)
Medal Athlete Time
Gold 1:44.341
Silver + 0.341
Bronze + 0.403
4th + 0.428
5th + 0.474
6th + 0.509
7th + 0.556
8th + 0.806
9th + 0.808
10th + 0.876


This was Zöggeler's second European championship in this event and fifth straight medal at the championships.

Women's singles

January 12, 2008 at 9 AM CET (8 AM UTC)
Medal Athlete Time
Gold 1:35.364
Silver +0.160
Bronze +0.167
4th + 0.176
5th + 0.320
6th + 0.412
7th + 0.735
8th + 0.779
9th + 1.019
10th + 1.037


Geisenberger won her first ever championship. The event was delayed one hour to heavy snowfall in the area. Hadler is the first non-German to medal in this event at the Winter Olympic, world, or European level since fellow Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

n Angelika Neuner
Angelika Neuner
Angelika Neuner is an Austrian luger who competed from 1987 to 2002. Competing in four Winter Olympics, she won two medals in the women's singles event with a silver in 1992 and a bronze in 1998...

 won a bronze at the 1998 Winter Olympics
1998 Winter Olympics
The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...

.

Men's doubles

January 12, 2008 at 3 PM CET (2 PM UTC)
Medal Athlete Time
Gold (Christian Oberstolz
Christian Oberstolz
Christian Oberstolz is an Italian luger who has competed since 1997. He won four medals at the FIL World Luge Championships with two silvers and two bronzes .At the FIL European Luge Championships, Oberstolz won five medals with one gold , three...

, Patrick Gruber
Patrick Gruber
Patrick Gruber is an Italian luger who has competed since 1997. He won four medals at the FIL World Luge Championships with two silvers and two bronzes .At the FIL European Luge Championships, Gruber won five medals with one gold Patrick Gruber (born January 31, 1978 in Bruneck) is an Italian...

)
1:33.779
Silver (Andreas Linger
Andreas Linger
Andreas Linger is an Austrian luger who has competed internationally since 2000. He and his younger brother Wolfgang began luging at a very young age, and did their first doubles run when they were 14...

, Wolfgang Linger
Wolfgang Linger
Wolfgang Linger is an Austrian luger who has competed internationally since 2000. As young children, he and his older brother Andreas learned to luge on a former Olympic luge track, and at age 14 began competing as a doubles team for the first time...

)
+0.159
Bronze (Gerhard Plankensteiner
Gerhard Plankensteiner
Gerhard Plankensteiner is an Italian national of Austrian descent luger who competed from 1986 to 2010...

, Oswald Haselrieder
Oswald Haselrieder
Oswald Haselrieder is an Italian national of Austrian descent luger who competed from 1990 to 2010...

)
+0.183
(Patric Leitner
Patric Leitner
Patric-Fritz Leitner is a German luger who competed from 1998 to 2010. Together with Alexander Resch he won the men's doubles event at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, United States. They also competed at the 2006 Winter Olympics, finishing sixth...

, Alexander Resch
Alexander Resch
Alexander Resch is a German luger who competed from 1998 to 2010. Together with Patric Leitner, he won the men's doubles event at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, United States. They also competed at the 2006 Winter Olympics, finishing sixth...

)
5th (André Florschütz
André Florschütz
André Florschütz is a German luger who competed from 1993 to 2010. Together with Torsten Wustlich, he won the silver medal in the men's doubles event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin....

, Torsten Wustlich
Torsten Wustlich
Torsten Wustlich is a German luger who competed from 1998 to 2010. Together with André Florschütz, he won the silver medal in the men's doubles event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin....

)
+0.408
6th (Peter Penz
Peter Penz
Peter Penz is an Austrian luger who has competed since 2003. He won two medals in the mixed team event at the FIL World Luge Championships with a silver in 2009 and a bronze in 2007...

, Georg Fischler
Georg Fischler
Georg Fischler is an Austrian luger who has competed since 2003. He won two medals in the mixed team event at the FIL World Luge Championships with a silver in 2009 and a bronze in FIL World Luge Championships 2007|2007]]...

)
+0.591
7th (Andris Šics
Andris Šics
Andris Šics is a Latvian luger who has competed since 1998. Competing in two Winter Olympics, he won a silver medal in the men's doubles event at Vancouver in 2010 alongside his teammate, older brother Juris Šics....

, Juris Šics
Juris Šics
Juris Šics is a Latvian luger who has competed since 1998. Competing in two Winter Olympics, he won a silver medal in the men's doubles event at Vancouver in 2010 alongside his teammate, younger brother Andris Šics....

)
+0.638
8th (Mihail Kuzmitch
Mihail Kuzmitch
Mikhail Sergeyevich Kuzmich , born October 8, 1982 in Krasnoyarsk) is a Russian luger who has competed since 1999. Competing in three Winter Olympics, he earned his best finish of 11th in the men's doubles event at Turin in 2006....

, Stanislav Mikheev
Stanislav Mikheev
Stanislav Mikheev is a Russian luger who has competed since the mid 2000s. His best finish at the FIL European Luge Championships was sixth in the men's doubles event at Sigulda in 2010....

)
+0.896
9th (Marcel Lorenz
Marcel Lorenz
Marcel Lorenz is a German luger who has competed since 2002. He finished ninth in the men's doubles event at the 2008 FIL European Luge Championships in Cesana, Italy....

, Christian Baude
Christian Baude
Christian Baude is a German luger who has competed since 2002. He finished ninth in the men's doubles event at the 2008 FIL European Luge Championships in Cesana, Italy....

)
+1.151
10th (Ivan Nevmerzhitski
Ivan Nevmerzhitski
Ivan Nevmerzhitski is a Russian luger who has competed since 2000. He finished tenth in the men's doubles event at the 2008 FIL European Luge Championships in Cesana, Italy....

, Vladimir Prokhorov
Vladimir Prokhorov
Vladimir Prokhorov is a Russian luger who has competed since 2000. He finished tenth in the men's doubles event at the 2008 FIL European Luge Championships in Cesana, Italy....

)
+1.174


The tie for the bronze was the first in a Winter Olympic
Luge at the Winter Olympics
Luge was introduced to the Winter Olympic Games in 1964, with both men's and women's events and a doubles event. Doubles is technically a mixed event, but is almost always competed by a team of two men...

, world championship, or European championship event since they started timing luge in the 1/1000ths of a second following the tie between Italy and East Germany in the men's doubles
Luge at the 1972 Winter Olympics
-Men's singles:-Doubles:A malfunctioning starting gate cancelled the results of the first run. Italy, whose doubles team of Paul Hildgartner and Walter Plaikner won the first run, protested to event officials the results should stand since all contestants had suffered equally, but to no avail....

 event at the 1972 Winter Olympics
1972 Winter Olympics
The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from February 3 to February 13, 1972 in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan...

 in Sapporo. Oberstolz and Gruber won their first ever title, ending Leitner and Resch's four-time championships reign in this event.

Mixed team relay

January 13, 2008 at 12 PM CET (11 AM UTC)
Medal Athlete Time
Gold (Mārtiņš Rubenis
Martinš Rubenis
Mārtiņš Rubenis is a Latvian luger who has competed since 1998. He won the bronze medal at the men's singles event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, becoming the first Latvian Mārtiņš Rubenis (born 26 September 1978 in Riga) is a Latvian luger who has competed since 1998. He won the bronze...

, Maija Tīruma
Maija Tiruma
Maija Tīruma is a Latvian luger who has competed since the 2000.She won two bronze medals in the mixed team relay event at the FIL World Luge Championships ....

, Andris Šics
Andris Šics
Andris Šics is a Latvian luger who has competed since 1998. Competing in two Winter Olympics, he won a silver medal in the men's doubles event at Vancouver in 2010 alongside his teammate, older brother Juris Šics....

, Juris Šics
Juris Šics
Juris Šics is a Latvian luger who has competed since 1998. Competing in two Winter Olympics, he won a silver medal in the men's doubles event at Vancouver in 2010 alongside his teammate, younger brother Andris Šics....

)
2:40.863
Silver (Martin Abentung
Martin Abentung
Martin Aberntung is an Austrian-born luger who competed from 1999 to 2010. He won a silver medal in the mixed team event at the 2008 FIL World Luge Championships in Oberhof, Germany...

, Veronika Halder
Veronika Halder
Veronika Halder is an Austrian luger who has competed since 2000. She won four medals at the FIL European Luge Championships with two silvers and two bronzes .Halder competed in two Winter Olympics, earning her best finish of fifth in the women's singles event at Turin in...

, Andreas Linger
Andreas Linger
Andreas Linger is an Austrian luger who has competed internationally since 2000. He and his younger brother Wolfgang began luging at a very young age, and did their first doubles run when they were 14...

, Wolfgang Linger
Wolfgang Linger
Wolfgang Linger is an Austrian luger who has competed internationally since 2000. As young children, he and his older brother Andreas learned to luge on a former Olympic luge track, and at age 14 began competing as a doubles team for the first time...

)
+ 0.008
Bronze (Armin Zöggeler
Armin Zöggeler
Armin Zöggeler is a luger and double Olympic champion who is an Italian national. He is one of the most successful men in the sport, nicknamed Il Cannibale , for his notable series of victories, or The Iceblood Champion, for his always cold, rational approach to the races.Zöggeler was born in...

, Sandra Gasparini
Sandra Gasparini
Sandra Gasparini is an Italian luger who has competed since 2006. She won the silver medal in the mixed team event at the 2007 FIL World Luge Championships in Igls, Austria....

, Gerhard Plankensteiner
Gerhard Plankensteiner
Gerhard Plankensteiner is an Italian national of Austrian descent luger who competed from 1986 to 2010...

, Oswald Haselrieder
Oswald Haselrieder
Oswald Haselrieder is an Italian national of Austrian descent luger who competed from 1990 to 2010...

)
+ 0.050


For the first time since the event debutted at the 1988 championships
FIL European Luge Championships 1988
The FIL European Luge Championships 1988 took place in Königssee, West Germany for a record fifth time after hosting the event previously in 1967, 1972, 1973, and 1977...

, Germany did not medal, finishing fourth.

Medal table

1 2 0 2 4
2 1 1 2 4
3 0 2 1 3
4 1 0 0 1
5 0 1 0 1
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