Korea’s national luge team is experiencing growing pains for the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games. Though luge is one of the official sporting events of the Winter Olympics, it isn’t very popular among Koreans. Luging has a relatively short history in Korea since its introduction to the country in the late 1990s.

For this reason, there is neither a special luge track nor enough Korean players. There are about 40 registered lugers in Korea, according to the Korea Luge Federation. However, despite the low number of players, they strive to make history for the Korean luge team.

 

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(From left) Korean national lugers Choi Eun-ju, Kim Dong-hyeon, Cho Jung-myung, Park Jin-yong and Sung Eun-ryung pose for photos after being ranked eighth in the 2013 Luge World Cup in Winterberg, Germany, on December 1. (Photo courtesy of the Korea Luge Federation)

 

The Korean national luge team ranked eighth in the third match of the 2013 Luge World Cup in Winterberg, Germany, on December 1, the best-ever performance of the team. The four players -- Sung Eun-ryung of women’s single, Kim Dong-hyeon of men’s single, and Cho Jung-myung and Park Jin-yong of men’s double -- recorded 2 minutes 30.336 seconds.

Their goal is clear: to qualify for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, scheduled take place next February, and accumulate more experience so that they can be ready to go for gold at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games.

This year, the team has been training with its new coach, German luger Steffen Sartor. They recently trained in Germany and Norway to prepare for the Luge World Cup. Their efforts have paid off, ranking 13th and eighth in the second and third World Cup matches they participated in for the first time.

Korean national lugers aim to do their best for the upcoming fourth and fifth Luge World Cup matches scheduled to be held in Whistler, Canada, on December 6-7 and in Park City of Utah, U.S. in January 2014 in order to qualify for the upcoming Winter Olympics in Sochi. 

 

[Source: Korea.net]