A young female athlete is in stable condition after an accident at the Whistler luge track Wednesday night.
It happened during a regular training session for the B.C. Luge Association between 6 and 7 p.m.
“These are kids learning to luge,” says spokeswoman for the Whistler Sliding Centre Patricia Leslie. “They are under the age of 14. They are just starting.”
Leslie says the young athletes start from corner 12 and the accident happened in corner 15.
“There are only 16 corners on the track, so you can imagine how far down they are,” says Leslie.
The athlete was transported to B.C.’s Children Hospital, and is in stable condition, responsive and talking.
It is not clear what caused the accident, but Leslie says there will be an evaluation into what happened.
“Every incident on the track is looked into.”
The identity of the athlete is not being released.
The Whistler Sliding Centre is home to the fastest sliding track in the world.
In 2010, 21-year-old Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili was killed in a crash at the Whistler Sliding Centre on the day of the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver Olympics, raising questions about the safety of the track.
- B.C. professor quits federal panel in protest of new disability benefit
- ‘Bad welcome to Canada’: White Rock stabbing victim’s wife angered by apparent random attack
- B.C. wildfire season off to early start with more than 100 already burning
- Trio of Metro Vancouver councillors call for end of B.C.’s decriminalization pilot
Comments