Hammarstrand
Encyclopedia
Hammarstrand is a locality
and the seat of Ragunda Municipality
in Jämtland County
, Sweden
with 1,061 inhabitants in 2005. The town is host to a bobsleigh
and luge
track. It was built on the dry bed of the former lake Ragundasjön
, which drained suddenly catastrophically in 1796.
Its last World Cup luge competition was held in 1990. Until the completion of the bobsleigh and luge track used for the 1994 Winter Olympics
at Lillehammer
in 1992, it was the only track of its kind in Scandinavia
. The track was the last natural track to host the FIL European Luge Championships and was the last natural track to host the FIL World Luge Championships until the 2000
event in St. Moritz
, Switzerland
. Its last use was in 2001.
Urban areas in Sweden
Urban area is a common English translation of the Swedish term tätort. The official term in English, used by Statistics Sweden, is, however, locality. There are 1,940 localities in Sweden . They could be compared with census-designated places in the United States.A tätort in Sweden has a minimum of...
and the seat of Ragunda Municipality
Ragunda Municipality
Ragunda Municipality is a municipality in Jämtland County in northern Sweden. Its seat is in Hammarstrand.The present municipality was formed in 1974, when "old" Ragunda Municipality was amalgamated with the municipalities of Fors and Stugun...
in Jämtland County
Jämtland County
Jämtland County is a county or län in the middle of Sweden consisting of the provinces of Jämtland and Härjedalen, along with minor parts of Hälsingland and Ångermanland, plus two tiny uninhabited strips of Lapland and Dalarna. Jämtland County constitutes 12 percent of Sweden's total area, and is...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
with 1,061 inhabitants in 2005. The town is host to a bobsleigh
Bobsleigh
Bobsleigh or bobsled is a winter sport in which teams of two or four make timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sled that are combined to calculate the final score....
and luge
Luge
A Luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine and feet-first. Steering is done by flexing the sled's runners with the calf of each leg or exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21-25 kilograms for singles and 25-30 kilograms for doubles. Luge...
track. It was built on the dry bed of the former lake Ragundasjön
Döda Fallet
Döda Fallet is an extinct whitewater rapid in Ragunda Municipality in the eastern part of the province of Jämtland in Sweden....
, which drained suddenly catastrophically in 1796.
Bobsleigh and luge track
Constructed in 1964, the track was 1045 meters long with 11 curves and a start height of 900 meters.Its last World Cup luge competition was held in 1990. Until the completion of the bobsleigh and luge track used for the 1994 Winter Olympics
1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 12 to 27 February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer failed to win the bid for the 1992 event. Lillehammer was awarded the games in 1988, after having beat...
at Lillehammer
Lillehammer
is a town and municipality in Oppland county, Norway, globally known for hosting the 1994 Winter Olympics. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of May 2011, the population of the town of Lillehammer was...
in 1992, it was the only track of its kind in Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
. The track was the last natural track to host the FIL European Luge Championships and was the last natural track to host the FIL World Luge Championships until the 2000
FIL World Luge Championships 2000
The FIL World Luge Championships 2000 took place in St. Moritz, Switzerland. This marked the only time since the 1981 world championships that the event has taken place on a naturally refrigerated track.-Men's singles:-Women's singles:-Men's doubles:...
event in St. Moritz
St. Moritz
St. Moritz is a resort town in the Engadine valley in Switzerland. It is a municipality in the district of Maloja in the Swiss canton of Graubünden...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. Its last use was in 2001.
Track statistics
| Turn Number | Name | Reason named |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Lillen | "The little one" |
| 2. | Sista skriket | "Last scream" |
| 3. | Centrumkurvan | "Center curve" |
| 4. | Ole | "Eeny" in Swedish Swedish language Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish... . Luge women's singles men's doubles joins the track after this curve. |
| 5. | Dole | "Meeny" in Swedish |
| 6. | Doff | "Miney" & "Moe" in Swedish |
| 7. | Lady | "Lady" |
| 8. | Sunekurvan | Named after Sune Nilsson, a former chairman of the local luge club. |
| 9. | Ding | |
| 10. | Dong | |
| 11. | Målkurvan | "Finish curve" |
Championships hosted
- FIL European Luge Championships: 1970FIL European Luge Championships 1970The FIL European Luge Championships 1970 took place in Hammarstrand, Sweden. This event was dominated by the rise of the East German team, who won six of the nine available medals at this championship...
, 1976FIL European Luge Championships 1976The FIL European Luge Championships 1976 took place in Hammarstrand, Sweden for the second time after previously hosted the championships in 1970...
, 1978FIL European Luge Championships 1978The FIL European Luge Championships 1978 took place in Hammarstrand, Sweden for the third time after hosting the event previously in 1970 and 1976.-Men's singles:-Women's singles:-Men's doubles:...
, 1986FIL European Luge Championships 1986The FIL European Luge Championships 1986 took place in Hammarstrand, Sweden for the fourth time after hosting the event previously in 1970, 1976, and 1978... - FIL World Luge Championships: 1967FIL World Luge Championships 1967The FIL World Luge Championships 1967 took place in Hammarstrand, Sweden. This event was held following the cancellation of the previous year's championships in Friedrichroda, East Germany, which was the last cancellation in the history of the world championships.-Men's singles:-Women's...
, 1975FIL World Luge Championships 1975The FIL World Luge Championships 1975 took place in Hammarstrand, Sweden for a second time after previously hosting the championships in 1967.-Men's singles:-Women's singles:-Men's doubles:-Medal table:-References:***...
, 1981FIL World Luge Championships 1981The FIL World Luge Championships 1981 took place in Hammarstrand, Sweden for the third time. Hammarstrand had hosted the event previously in 1967 and 1975...