PyeongChang 2018: Stories To Watch.
Luge.
The sport of luge got its Olympic start
at Innsbruck 1964.
Since that time, only five countries have ever won
a gold medal in luge.
That's 43 events, total. More on that in a moment.
So, what are the events?
At the Games of 2018
you will see the men's and women's singles,
doubles, as well as an event just added
at the last Olympics, the team relay.
Luge has the most medals among the three sliding sports.
The luge track at PyeongChang is the Olympic Sliding Centre.
And it will also be the venue for bobsleigh
and skeleton during the Olympic Winter Games.
The artificial track has been around since 2016
and features 16 turns.
The men's course stretches more than 1,300 metres,
with an altitude drop of 117 metres.
That's like leaping off of Big Ben or the Statue of Liberty.
The women rates a bit over 1,200 metres, with 13 turns.
Which movie character claimed he grew up taking luge lessons?
The answer later on PyeongChang 2018:
The Stories To Watch.
No man has been more dominant sliding for singles titles
recently than Felix Loch of Germany.
Back-to-back gold medals at the last two Olympics
have made Felix the unquestioned name
to watch in 2018.
In Vancouver he became the youngest slider
to win luge at an Olympics.
Since then, no-one has had greater success.
That's really important, to win the medals.
We have two or three young guys,
I hope they will be the next Felix.
If Felix Loch can manage another victory in 2018,
he would equal the all-time Olympic mark
of three consecutive gold medals
held by the legendary German Georg Hackl,
who went undefeated in the 1990s.
No-one would be happier for Felix than his father, Norbert,
coach of the team.
It should come as no surprise that one of the top women
to watch is from Germany.
Natalie Geisenberger is a three-time Olympic medallist.
She got her start in the sport at the age of ten.
Her first Games, at 22, saw her earn the bronze medal.
At the last Olympics, Natalie not only won the singles title
but the inaugural mixed team relay as well.
It will be etched in history
as the first double luge gold for women at one Olympics.
(OLYMPIC MEDALS)
Fifth all time in overall medals won is West Germany,
with ten total, fourth is long-time power Austria.
In third sits Italy with seven gold medals.
Then the big two - East Germany,
and at the top, Germany, winning a whopping 36 medals.
Tatjana Huefner of Germany is taking part
in her fourth Games.
A soldier in the German army when she competed
in her first Olympics in 2006, she put together runs
good enough to earn the bronze medal.
Four years later, at Vancouver,
the now 26-year-old Tatjana won the gold medal,
and in Sochi she turned in a steady silver performance.
With a fourth medal in PyeongChang,
Tatjana would become the most
decorated female luger in Games history.
Did you know that in 54 years of Olympic competition,
only one person has won a singles medal
who was not from Europe?
Her name is Erin Hamlin,
and the slider from the USA is returning in 2018
aiming to better her bronze medal performance from Sochi.
The three-time Olympic veteran
can handle and find any advantage from her experience
on the new track in PyeongChang.
Sochi for example was also a new track,
and by the time we got to race day,
in my mind I had
really been able to pick apart the run,
and every time I went down, even if I wasn't perfect,
I had enough confidence in my ability.
The last two Olympics have seen the defending bronze medallist
go on to win the gold medal.
Can Hamlin repeat history,
and become the third straight champion?
The most decorated luger in Olympic history,
Armin Zoeggeler, retired after 2014.
He now coaches Italy's
promising team and its star, Dominik Fischnaller.
I don't like comparing myself to Dominik Fischnaller
and vice versa.
He's learned a lot from me
and our goal is to reach the podium.
Dominik debuted at the 2014 Olympics
with a sixth place finish.
His aim, of course, is to become Italy's first singles
winner since Zoeggeler.
Dominik celebrates his 25th birthday on February 20th,
the 12th day of the Games.
Maybe with the pressure off,
he'll get to watch a Bayern Munich match,
his favourite football club.
Doubles will once again see brother duos
strive for an Olympic crown.
Keep your eyes on Andris and Juris Sics from Latvia.
These siblings have earned three medals in three Games
which labels them as the most decorated Latvians
ever in Winter,
but their bronze finishes in 2014 have them hungry for more.
Can they topple the non-brother team from Germany,
Toni Eggert and Sascha Benecken?
By the way, the answer to which movie character revealed
he had grown up taking luge lessons...?
It was none other than Dr Evil.
Finally, for people who want to see action
at the Olympic Sliding Centre,
word is out about this new track.
Starting on the 10th, you can catch the men's singles event.
The next two days will crown the women's champion.
On the 14th, all the doubles will take place,
culminating with the new team relay on the night of the 15th.
The Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang,
set to begin February 9th.
Fill your knowledge tank by watching other episodes
on Olympic Channel.