Singularly High Hopes for Doubles Teams

If Wednesday’s training runs are any indication, the United States will be in the medal chase with both its luge doubles teams today.

The teams of Mark Grimmette and Brian Martin and Chris Thorpe and Clay Ives turned in some of the top times at Utah Olympic Park. Grimmette and Martin, bronze medalists at the Nagano Games, were the fastest on the first run at 43.217 seconds and second-fastest in the second run at 43.313. Thorpe and Ives were fastest starters both times, with the day’s best 3.048 on the second run. Thorpe, who won a silver in Nagano with now-retired teammate Gordy Sheer, and Ives had runs of 43.357, third best on the first run, and 43.485, fourth best on the second.

The most consistent sliders were Germans Patric-Fritz Leitner and Alexander Resch, whose 43.210 was the best time of the day, .007 better than the first run by Grimmette and Martin.

The American luge breakthrough came at Nagano. Before the silver and bronze won there, all 87 medals awarded in the event went to four nations--Germany, Austria, Italy and the Soviet Union.